Omnia Iusta Sunt Amore Belloque
by SpaceAstronautCapt.RobotKoala
Summary: Addison Daniels works for the CIA. When she and Alex Rider are forced together under discreet circumstances, they vow to keep things between them strictly business-related. The thing is, they're anything but that. The stakes rise and Alex & Addie soon learn why all is fair in love and war... Rated T for language. Set 4 years after Scorpia Rising. COMPLETED.
1. Fortes Fortuna Iuvat

**Note: **Hi there :D Thank you for clicking on this story! This is one of my first FFs ever and my first Alex Rider one at that. I've been writing a lot lately, partly in practice for a college portfolio, gah! So please, bear with me. I really really appreciate reviews—comments and constructive criticism(: So if you click that review button… I'll love you forever! Really, I'm begging you not to be intimidated. I swear I can entertain you! Cross my heart...

This also takes place when Alex is 18, so for those of you that haven't read all the books, especially Scorpia Rising, read at your own risk!... But I do so hope you enjoy it :)

I own nothing except the products of my imagination.

Chapter One – Fortes Fortuna Iuvat (Fortune Favors the Brave)

The road was silent and empty, barely visible in the darkness of the night. The thick forest rose up on both sides, concealing it in its impenetrable leaves and trunks. The only source of light came from the stars and half-moon in the sky, which blinked against the navy blue backdrop. No one traveled this road, not at this time.

But if someone happened to be on their way to the next state over, they would have seen the line of black SUVs, vans, and police cars parked along the way. They might have counted and found more than a handful of them, most visible particularly by the logos painted on the sides: SWAT, FBI, and CIA. Then further down the road was a gas station. If someone had indeed seen the government vehicles and driven by at the right time…

They would have also seen the gas station explode, the building erupting in flames, smoke, and debris, the orange and yellow sparks soaring up into the night sky.

* * *

_Seven minutes earlier…_

_-_Addie-

"I hope you know this won't be easy."

I kept my eyes on the road in front of us, the SUV's headlights trailing the tailgate of the SWAT van ahead. "I never said it would." But I knew what my unit leader meant. "I'm just pretending it is so that maybe it will be."

Agent David Reyes glanced over at me, his tan face illuminated red as the line of cars slowed. "Just know that we'll be here to pull you out."

Before opening the door, I shot him a smile and said, "I know." The SWAT team, dressed in heavy dark gear, jumped out of their vans and immediately hustled forward in the direction of the gas station. David and I stayed back with the other CIA agents that were quickly going over the plan.

Julia Stark, a tough, unforgiving woman with a perfect black bob and harsh eyes, turned to me as she checked her automatic pistol. "I hope you know what you're doing, Daniels."

I threw my hands up as David cautioned, "Now, Stark, give her a break. Addie can handle it."

"What is with everyone hoping I know something?" It didn't bother me, really, but I was beginning to doubt my role in this assignment. I hadn't exactly chosen it but I was essentially the only one for the job.

As I carefully concealed my gun inside my jacket, I heard a smooth, low voice say, "We're just making sure you aren't gonna kill yourself." I looked up. Brian James was only a few years older than me and, I had to admit, was quite a handsome guy. He had ice blue eyes that could smolder any unsuspecting woman (young _or_ old) and glossy brown hair stuck up around his head like an Abercrombie model. Yes, I'd received deathly/envious glares whenever Brian and I happened to be together when our badges and guns weren't showing but it was too bad he was a jerk; I probably would have enjoyed the jealousy instead of shaking my head. You wouldn't have any idea that he had a big ego unless you actually talked to him.

"Don't count on it," I replied, reassessing my outfit. I had to look as teenager-ish as possible, so I'd worn my own leather jacket, blouse, skinny jeans, and ankle boots. This seemed to be the only "easy" part of this assignment.

Brian only smirked and looked me up and down, something I learned to be a habit of his. "Just be careful, Daniels." I resisted sticking my tongue out at his retreating bulletproof vest-clad back.

"Ready?" David came up to me, Julia right behind him. We all began moving towards the gas station, whispers disappearing into the trees as everyone fell into mission mode.

I took a deep breath, thinking briefly of all the assignments I'd done in the past two years. Truthfully, sometimes it was kind of easy if you looked at how all of this began in the first place. But trying to reason with myself… well, it was still not much compared to other things I'd been through. There was nothing to worry about.

Tightening my ponytail, I put new confidence in my stride along with a careless teenage girl bounce. "Oh, I was born ready."

David and I had another short run-through before I walked down to the station. I knew the whole plan inside and out and the layout: if the drugs and illegal contraband were there like we were told, grab the crap and run. I had to leave the rest to the other guys who were ready to bring the house down if anything bad happened.

I certainly didn't have to worry about how I, an ordinary teen, had gotten to the store and why. There was an old shack about a mile down the road that plenty of wild kids my age used to have parties. I was just another one of them coming by to grab some snacks and other… party necessities.

"You've got this" was the last thing David said to me before I stepped into the lights surrounding the little mart. I didn't need to worry. I had a strong, large team of agents behind me. I could feel my fingerprint-sensitive gun fitted snugly between my jacket and body, useless to any other who touched it. And I definitely hadn't lost my skills, especially hand-to-hand combat. Who did I think I was up against anyway?

The entire parking lot was empty save the old Cadillac that most likely belonged to whoever was behind the counter. After I opened the door, it happened to be a Mexican man complete with gelled black hair, a gold chain, and a button up shirt. He barely looked up from his newspaper so I continued towards the food, grabbing random bags of candy. I kept a small eye on him. Taking a Sprite bottle, I felt strangely exposed. Only a little bit of a familiar feeling.

He didn't even flinch when I set down the food loudly on the counter. He stood from his chair and I saw that his nametag read: _Roberto._ Hmm.

I watched him begin scanning silently as I rocked back and forth on my heels. After a moment, I mustered up a bright and cheery voice and asked, "Don't you get bored here all alone?" I already knew the answer—he had friends.

But Roberto stayed silent. And because I didn't want to waste my time trying to get a single word out of the guy, I went straight to the point.

"Your toilet's broken."

He froze, one hand hovering over the packet of Cheetos. His eyes met mine but I couldn't tell if he was surprised. I hadn't gone to the bathroom yet I'd said the magic phrase. Me, the ordinary teen. Normally a person looking to buy had to go to the bathroom, make sure it actually worked, and come back to report a defective toilet. If it actually didn't work, there were other ways to show that you wanted something other than a Payday or Drumstick.

But I didn't do either of those things. I knew what they had and not only was my unit going to take it, but we were going to bust them for it.

Roberto seemed to have recovered, scanning the last purchase as if nothing had happened. "We have nothing today," he said simply, his accent thick.

I stood there, not believing him. It wasn't like they weren't allowed to sell to younger clients. In fact, younger clients were the majority of their source of profit. He couldn't be telling the truth. "Excuse me?"

He didn't look at me and tapped the little screen that displayed my total. "I said nothing. Nothing is here. All gone." His tone was calm with no trace of remorse or even amusement. The man wasn't mocking me but I felt a surge of resentment, not only towards who'd tipped us off because they'd screwed up, but towards myself. I'd been getting ready for the satisfaction of capturing a bunch of notorious drug dealers yet somehow… somehow something went wrong. They were "out of stock." Impossible.

"Addie? Addie, what's going on?" David's voice was loud and clear in my ear. I ignored him.

I thrust my hand into my jacket and whipped out the gun, aiming right at Roberto's head. _"__¿Dónde están?" _I demanded where they were, figuring he knew Spanish much better than English.

Fear overtook his face as he slowly drew his hands up. _"¿__Quién?" _He didn't seem to register that I had switched languages. _Who?_ he was asking.

"You know what I'm talking about, _señor. ¡¿__ Dónde están los hombres y las drogas?" Where are the men and drugs?_

I hadn't been paying attention to anything other than getting information (a bad move, Agent) until David was shouting in my ear. "Daniels! What are you doing? That's not your call!"

I winced. If I ever went against orders, it was never intentional. This was no exception, but the drugs…

Suddenly the wall of alcohol and cigarette packs behind Roberto shattered, causing him to cry out and collapse. Without a moment's hesitation, I ducked and rolled to the side behind the shelves of chips just as another gunshot went through the counter. A rack of sunglasses with a mirror stood on it and in its reflection I saw a tall, muscular man dressed in all black. He was holding a gun.

"Addie! Addie, we're going in—" David yelled frantically.

"It'd be wise to tell your friends to retreat," the man in black sneered as he approached where I was hiding by the counter.

I scooted further behind the shelves and away from the cashier. "And why would I do that?" I wanted to keep him busy while the others knocked the doors down.

He walked with slow, careful steps. I clenched the gun in my hands. "You wouldn't want them risking their lives trying to rescue you when the station blows up, right?"

My heart pounded and I was immediately panicking. Instinctively, I looked towards the glass doors and shouted, "Abort, abort! Fall back! David, _fall back!" _

In that moment the man ran forward and skidded around the corner of the shelves. I scrambled left, further behind the wall just as he raised his gun. But I randomly pulled the trigger of mine, hitting him in the shoulder. Watching him fall, I wondered how I wasn't reacting well. A wild shot?

I pushed myself off the ground as he charged forward again. I'd taken three steps when a hand took hold of my ankle, making me trip and the gun slide across the floor. My heart raced as I tried to think of what to do. The job didn't seem so easy anymore—I was fighting for my life and I didn't even know how much time I had before we would be blown to bits and pieces.

With my other foot I kicked away, praying it'd make contact. In desperation I reached for an oversize Hershey's bar and threw it at him. Instead he got up on his feet, clearly unfazed, dragging me backwards. But why wasn't he shooting me? His gun was right there; he had a perfect chance.

I saw that his shoulder was bleeding as he leaned over me, his eyes wild and excited. "Not so tough now, are you—?" I took the chance to lash out with my free foot, right into his face. He attempted to find me through his bloody nose as I stood up, but I countered him with a roundhouse kick followed by a classic knee to the groin.

Finally I could escape. I ran past the counter and it happened in a split second: Roberto stood up from behind it though I couldn't react fast enough—pain radiated through my skull as my ponytail was grabbed and my side slammed into the counter. As I cried out and twisted in his hold, the edge dug into my lower back. Struggling to sideline the pain and think, I stopped trying to reach him from behind me and instead leaned back, using my weight to roll backwards and catch him with my feet.

We tumbled to the floor and I barely caught myself as my forehead struck the edge of the counter. Wasting no time, I dizzily found my way to the doors, pushing them open. They felt a lot heavier than they did the first time I'd walked through, completely oblivious to the danger awaiting me.

I didn't see or hear much except dark figures and a ringing noise. I was nearing the last gas pump when I saw David running towards me, calling my name. His frantic eyes were behind me as he raised his gun. I managed to look back to see the man lying halfway out the doors of the station, a black shape in his hand pointed at me.

Snapping into focus, I broke into a run. Never did I hear the actual gunshot but I felt it instantly, shooting throughout my right leg. I buckled and fell hard onto the pavement, throwing my arm out last minute to break the fall. The agony landing on it was nothing compared to the torture in my entire leg. I thrashed about, gritting my teeth though it did nothing to stop the sobs that broke through.

Without warning there was a huge explosion that filled the sky with bright light. I felt the impact, a wave passing over me. I tried to recoil but immediately regretted it—it felt like someone was hammering away at my knee and drilling into it at the same time. In the corner of my eye I saw that the gas station was engulfed in flames, emitting heat more powerful than Texas in June.

Exhaustion hit me. All the fighting, the running, and my broken body… My vision went in and out of focus, things were spinning, and I couldn't formulate any thoughts more than pain, pain, and more pain. I made a measly effort to stay awake; I could vaguely hear David yelling for me.

Through my tear-filled eyes I saw someone lean over me, blocking my view of the blazing building. He was saying something; his brown hair flopped over his familiar green eyes. I took labored breaths through a sharp pain in my chest and tried to speak. But it was no use, I was slipping away. With another agonizing gasp, I realized what he was saying over and over through the chaos:

My name.

* * *

**Note: **And there it is! If you are wondering where Alex is, don't worry! (: He's right around the corner... Well, actually, he's in the next chapter.


	2. Ego Nolo Caesar Esse

**Note: **First off I'd like to thank Ragold, Mrs. Frank Hardy, and BritBookWorm for being my first reviewers! You're awesome D Now I'd like to confess that originally this story wasn't supposed to have Alex's POV. Since I wanted it to be a little more informal and all, I'd gone with first person for Addie… and since I _am_ including Alex's POV, I'm afraid I'm having a little difficulty with the up-close and personal stuff since he was always written in third person. I guess I'll just have to play around with his personality.

Secondly, I haven't read all of the books (I know, shame) and the ones I have read I haven't touched in a while. So excuse any discrepancies!

Thank you again(: I own nothing except the product of my imagination and if you review, I'll love you forever!

xx

Chapter Two – Ego Nolo Caesar Esse (I Don't Want To Be Caesar)

-Alex-

It was nine in the morning, London time. I was sitting in a private jet that was heading for America. Where in America? I didn't know. I had been kidnapped. Again. Taken right off my school's grounds as if my education was of no importance. I'd barely stepped foot onto the grass when the black car screeched to a stop behind me and the door was thrown open, Ben Daniels, aka "Fox", stepping out. Before I could protest, he'd tossed me in despite my attempts to escape.

I sighed, leaning back in the chair that was as soft as butter, and looked out the window. The ocean was visible below, the sun reflecting off of the infinite number of waves. I hadn't gotten much explanation when I'd been dragged into the car, not from Mrs. Jones or Ben, both of whom I hadn't seen for a long time. When my protests became angrier, Ben threatened to knock me unconscious. _Then _I really wouldn't get any answers.

And so here I was.

"Rider! Wake up," Ben barked, sitting in the chair opposite me. "We have things to go over." He slapped a folder down onto the table between us.

Mrs. Jones, who had been avoiding me since I yelled at her on the ride to the airport, came and sat beside me. She reached out and opened the folder, revealing files of information. On top of all the pages was a photo of a girl, perhaps my age. She had long brown-blonde hair, wide green eyes, and was smiling. "Addison Marie Daniels," Mrs. Jones began. "Have you heard of her? She's eighteen years old, like you, and works for the CIA in America." Glancing at Ben, she added, "And she is in no way related to Ben Daniels."

The man snorted. "I've seen her records. Pretty impressive. I wouldn't be surprised if we had the same genes."

I shook my head and said to Mrs. Jones, "Maybe once or twice, I don't know. What has she got to do with me?" I attempted to keep my voice controlled. Though I felt a little horrible for what I'd said in the car, I still was aggravated about my kidnapping.

"A little over two weeks ago, someone tipped off the CIA about illegal activity at a gas station on the border between Virginia and West Virginia. The government, including Daniels's team, went to take them out, using Daniels as an undercover buyer," Mrs. Jones explained. "Unfortunately, the men had packed up and left the station to be blown, hoping to take some government agents out in the process. Daniels barely escaped but with major injuries. She has a broken leg and has been excused from taking on any further cases while she recovers."

I stared at the papers scattered before me. "I still don't understand what—"

"You've been sent to protect her." Ben's eyes were serious as he gazed at me. Before I could say anything, he pointed to a particular piece of paper. "This man, Adrian Castillo, is one of the most notorious, brilliant, and wanted men in the world. You're hearing his name for the first time because he's very good at keeping low."

"People across the globe in Africa, America, Russia, you name it, are committing nearly every kind of offense and corruption, all under Castillo's rule," Mrs. Jones jumped in. "Scorpia has also employed him before." She glanced at me but I said nothing. She continued, "A large percentage of them get away with it, too, and have been for over a decade. In America though, more and more of Castillo's goons are getting caught, thanks to the CIA. That's why we think the gas station situation was to lure them into a trap and get them killed because they are quite an elite team."

"But why should _I _protect her?" I couldn't bring myself to believe it—after all these missions I'd been sent on, always saving the world for Mr. Blunt, I never expected something like this. "You don't really believe I could take on this man myself, do you?"

"That's why I'm here." Ben grinned but I ignored him.

Mrs. Jones looked me in the eye. "Castillo will not go after her himself, Alex. He's a powerful man and won't be focused on this one goal of his. He probably doesn't even know that her assassination is underway because he has many people in charge of his operations. He just oversees them.

The CIA has had reports of suspicious activity regarding Daniels and her family. She's definitely a target and they can't have her walking around with secret service agents surrounding her."

I thought for a moment and said slowly, "So I have to be her bodyguard."

"She won't know that. You'll pose as an exchange student who will stay with the family, go to her school—"

"You're joking." This was absurd. Sure, I'd gone undercover before and done similar things, but the whole thing seemed… faulty. Wasn't the girl an agent as well?

I asked Mrs. Jones that very question and she shook her head. "Daniels _will _know that you are an agent. She just won't be told exactly why you are there. She wouldn't really agree with the whole "bodyguard" idea either. We've been told that she's quite an… independent character." A sort of smile twitched on her lips.

"I'll be there with you, kid," Ben reassured me. "The CIA headquarters is in Virginia anyway and I have to work with them on Castillo. I'll check up on you frequently."

"Oh, that makes me feel so much better," I replied sarcastically, unable to help myself.

Ben merely shrugged. "I'll be staying with David Reyes. He's the unit leader."

Mrs. Jones touched my arm lightly. "And Alex, we don't know how long this will be for. Until we find a way to stop Castillo…" She hesitated, then said, "There's no other way to do this. You're the only answer."

"I'd do it if I could," Ben said in a regretful tone, "but I think you're this girl's best protection when it comes to always being around to look after her. Besides, many of us understand the urgency of this situation. If it were you in this situation… no one would like to lose you, kid. Whether you're an agent or not." I didn't know what to say—I wasn't sure if I should be touched or stay bitter.

"We've already contacted Jack as well, Alex," Mrs. Jones said as if that would comfort me.

"Was that before or after you decided to kidnap me for the hundredth time?" The harshness in my tone made her look away.

Ben looked at me and pushed the files towards me. "Why don't we leave you to look through these? You can think about what you have to do and if you have any questions, just ask." He stood up with Mrs. Jones to sit in the chairs across the aisle. "Alex…"

I glanced up, partly surprised by the name. He almost never referred to me by anything other than "Rider" or "Cub" from my mission days… the mission days that were quickly catching up to me. "Yeah?"

"I know it's been a while since you last worked for MI6 but you're an incredibly smart and skilled young man, Alex," Ben said. I tore my eyes away from his, not wanting to hear anymore. But he kept going. "That's why they've always turned to you for help. This Daniels girl… I've heard a lot of impressive things about her, but you'll always be the best damn agent I've ever known. You've got a lot of potential, kid. Use it."

But I didn't want to use my potential, not in this way. Ever since MI6 first asked for my help four years ago, my life had never been the same. Mission after mission I'd wondered when I could skip the spy stuff and go to school and make a life for myself. It had been a long time since I'd seen these people. Then they showed up to my school, took me right off the street, and dumped all this on me without so much as asking if I even wanted to do it. Who knew what kind of people the Daniels family was? And how I was expected to keep an eye on a girl my own age (from an extremely powerful man that worked with Scorpia) for who knows how long?

Ben tried to make me feel better about myself and what I've done. He called me the best agent he'd ever met. He was putting me on a pedestal that I didn't want nor deserve. But the only praise I wanted was for being the character I was, not the agent. I wanted people to look up to me and admire me for reasons other than my conquests and missions. They were making that difficult by coming into my life again.

Gritting my teeth, I looked down at the picture of Addison Daniels. I thought of Ben nearly manhandling me, being taken against my will on this jet, practically being guilt tripped into this assignment… all of it sent a surge of fury through me. For the moment, I hated Addison Daniels. After all of this…

She had better be worth it.


	3. Omne Initium Este Difficile

**Note: **Sorry, I don't think this chapter's that great. Nevertheless, I hope it's somewhat satisfactory! As always, thank you, I own nothing except the products of my imagination, and if you review, I shall love you forever(:

Chapter Three – Omne Initium Este Difficile (Every Beginning Is Difficult)

-Addie-

"You have to be joking," I groaned as the shiny BMW skidded to a stop in front of me. The passenger window of the BMW rolled down, revealing a familiar movie star grin and aviators.

"Daniels! I'm your chauffeur for today." Oh God.

While lounging on one of the benches on the school grounds, I'd recognized the car instantly among the sea of high schoolers, Toyotas, and Volkswagens; it stuck out like a sore thumb… a _glossy _sore thumb.

Mom had texted me minutes before school got out, letting me know that neither she nor Dad was going to pick me up today from school. Ever since the gas station incident two weeks ago, I'd been a walking—no, _limping_ poster board for the dark side of the secret agent/spy many thought so fabulous. I had a sprained wrist, broken leg, and some very sore, achy muscles and various bruises and cuts all over my body. Luckily the bullet had missed my ACL, saving me from several more months of recovery. Some of the wounds had healed by now but I was still walking around with crutches. My story upon returning to school was a rock climbing accident… completely made up of course, courtesy of the CIA.

"Who's that?" Derek, a friend of mine, walked up beside me, shielding his eyes from the sun that shone off his dark hair.

I rolled my eyes and sighed. "That would be my ride."

"Oh my God, he's cute!" Kylie gasped. I looked up to see that Brian had removed his sunglasses and was smirking like the idiot he was. He and his car were attracting the attention of teenagers within a fifteen-yard radius.

"Girl, you need to get me his number." My other close friend, Arianna, was eyeing Brian the way a lion did his prey before he pounced. Of course, with her tall frame and gorgeous black hair, she wouldn't need my help getting any guy's attention.

It was bad enough seeing the way girls looked at my teammate, but my friends? I didn't want them to be exposed to his obnoxiousness. Waving goodbye to them and ignoring their shouts of "Does he have a girlfriend?", "Would he date a high school senior?", and "Give him my number!" I piled into Brian's car.

I tried to settle into the lush leather seat while Brian sped out of the parking lot. "Did my mom ask you to pick me up? Or did you volunteer?" I could barely keep the annoyance out of my tone.

"Relax, sweetheart. Stark would've taken you but she's at headquarters. So yes, I was forced to give your incapacitated butt a ride."

I ignored the jab. "David?"

This made Brian pause. "He's busy." I was startled; I'd expected a smart remark but instead he was a little aloof, not the intolerable jerk he usually was. Something must've been wrong.

"Busy with what?" I probed. Was it the Castillo case? While I was in the hospital, I'd begged David to keep me updated on the situation, though all he (and everyone else) wanted was for me to recover and not worry.

Brian reached over and patted my head. I ducked and scowled as he laughed, "Don't worry your pretty little head, Daniels. You don't need to know everything." And there was the good old Brian.

But I did need to know. I had a bad habit with curiosity, something Dad blamed on "the agent in me." I didn't feel like pushing Brian for a straight answer, so I just glared out the window until we got home.

I waved off his offer of help when he dropped me off and made it inside the house. The first thing I noticed as I tossed my bag at the foot of the stairs was the sound of angry voices. Confused, I made my way to the living room to find the source. When I got there though, two complete strangers sitting on one of the sofas caught me off guard. The older man, probably around his mid-twenties, had close-cropped black hair and muscled arms; he definitely looked militant. The other one seemed closer to my age with wavy blond hair and steely eyes. They both were casual in t-shirts and jeans. The teenage girl in me concluded that they were kind of attractive but the other part, the agent, was screaming "Stranger danger!"

I stared at them and they stared at me until the dark-haired one said, "Hi."

I hesitated. "Um, hi." _Who are you and what are you doing in my house?_ I added silently.

He pointed towards the door leading into the kitchen. "Your parents are in there."

Nodding my thanks, I awkwardly scuffled over to it, feeling their gazes on me, and peeked around the doorway. My dad was sitting at the dining room table, his arms crossed and jaw set. Instantly I knew something was going on—if he had his upset face on, then Mom… She was pacing back and forth behind him and her face was flushed with anger.

"You didn't tell me he was a _boy! _A boy with no proper training whatsoever…" she was saying through clenched teeth. I felt bad for whoever she was yelling at. My mom was made of steel and could cut deeper with words than a combat knife when she wanted to—even Julia Stark could be intimidated by her. It was probably just all the years Mom had spent in the field during her days as a CIA agent. Yet I still didn't know who she was arguing with. It wasn't Dad because he was staring menacingly at something (or someone?) across the table.

"He's eighteen, Margot, just like Addie," someone said. My heart jumped in my throat. Was that…? "Besides, you know how successful he's been with MI6. He's more capable than you think."

Mom whirled around and pointed a finger. "He may have saved the world several times, Reyes, but who's to say that he'll even take this job seriously?"

"Joseph, please," I heard David plead. "Tell her she needs to be reasonable. I spoke to the kid myself and I think he's our best chance. Don't you want what's best for Addie?" I sucked in a breath. David knew better than to talk about my mom as if she wasn't there and say she needed to be reasonable, let alone question her parenting ability.

Dad shook his head as Mom slammed a fist onto the dining table. "Don't you dare patronize me, David Reyes," she almost growled. Oh no. I had to get in there before it got uglier. "And don't even _think_ that you can tell me what's best for my daughter—"

"What's going on?" I asked loudly, stepping out so they could see me. The three of them glanced up and I could see them trying to hide the obvious distress on their faces. "Who are our guests?"

David glanced at Mom, who wasn't meeting his gaze. "I guess I should introduce you to them." He stood up and walked towards me, my parents following suit after a moment's hesitation. I noticed he was dressed for work in dress pants and a button up shirt with his gun at his waist.

David and I both settled into the two armchairs while Mom and Dad occupied the loveseat. The two strangers were looking at us curiously. "Addie, this is Agent Ben Daniels, an MI6 operative," David introduced with a gesture.

"Just call me Ben," the older one said, holding a hand out. "And don't worry, I'm not related to you." He threw me a friendly wink as I shook his hand.

"And that's Alex Rider. I'm sure you remember hearing about him."

Alex Rider. I knew the name. He had quite a reputation among the international securities for the incredible (and not to mention dangerous) missions MI6 had sent him on. Brian had teased me plenty of times for being behind the curve because of this boy and his accomplishments. "I have heard of you," I said politely, looking at him.

"I've heard of you too." His voice was soft but firm, just like his hand. His eyes lingered on my face for a second before going to the window behind me. They both had a distinct British accent, and though I had certainly met a fair amount of people with one, it still sounded strange yet fascinating to my American ears.

David answered my unspoken question. "Ben will be studying with us at headquarters while Alex will be immersed here in American life for future assignments."

American immersion? I couldn't help but think that Ben's reason sounded plausible while Alex's… I highly doubted that he needed to research our dull, mundane lives here to save the world from something as precarious as Scorpia or the Russian mafia. What was the benefit in that? Maybe it was just a cover-up? David wouldn't lie to me. He's known for too long that I wasn't the type of person to be lied to, not only because I could tell but I had eventually grown to read people. Sometimes. But for once I was afraid of voicing my uncertainty for fear of coming off as a smart aleck. Still, I couldn't ignore the nagging feeling that told me something was off.

"Really?" I decided to ask, trying to keep my voice neutral. "What could you possibly look for here in old, boring America?" I joked. David shot me a funny look.

Ben laughed. "I actually find your country quite fascinating. I decided to come here to get out of my comfort zone with MI6 and see how you do things here." He shrugged, flashing a grin.

"It's no big deal, Add," David guaranteed. "They won't be here for long. Ben's staying with me and your parents were generous enough to offer your guest room to Alex. Did I mention he'll pose as an exchange student at your school?" While he spoke, I became surer that I was being lied to. The way his voice faltered saying they wouldn't stay too long, the way my mom shifted in the corner of my eye at the mention of her and Dad, and the overall way he seemed nonchalant with big eyes and a too-big grin… This was how he acted when he tried to fib to my face.

"David." David looked up and I could feel everyone else's eyes on me. "Why are they here?" As our eyes met, I could see that he was exasperated. He definitely knew that I knew he was lying. Before he could say anything though, someone else spoke up.

"We're here because of Castillo," Alex said, leveling his gaze with mine. "Ben and I were told that MI6 and the CIA were working together on gathering up his assailants, if not his capture. It's true that he will be at the CIA headquarters and that I'll be an exchange student. Agent Reyes just didn't want you to know because…" The corner of his lips twitched. "Well, he didn't want you throwing yourself in this case while you are injured."

Several moments passed before Dad, who hadn't said a word at all, said, "He's right, Addie. We knew how much you'd want in on this…"

_So you thought it would be better to lie to me? _I bit my lip, not wanting to cause a fuss, especially not in front of Ben and Alex. "Alright," I said finally and shrugged. "It's your business, not mine. I won't bother anyone about it."

My parents and David weren't expecting that answer—that was evident from the surprise on their faces. Ben was just smirking and Alex… well, he didn't seem to ever stray from that hard expression in his eyes. Everyone appeared to be satisfied though, as David announced that he was going to take Ben to get settled in at his place while Alex did the same here. They left, leaving my parents, Alex, and me standing silently by the doorway, unsure of ourselves.

Eventually Mom smiled and swept a hand up the stairs. "Why don't we show you your room, Alex? You can get settled in while Joseph and I prepare dinner."

The guest room was right next to mine and about the same size, complete with a queen-sized bed, dresser, desk and chair, and walk-in closet. Like mine, the window provided a clear view of our neighborhood, the lower roof slanting below it. I sat on that roof often to watch the sun, which was still high in the sky, as it set behind the house and trees across the street. For the several years I was alone upstairs, I pretty much had this time to myself and took advantage of it.

I realized with a jolt that no longer would I have these precious moments of solitude whenever I desired. Not only was it because of my leg, but it was also because of Alex. Even if I did get this cast off in a few weeks and he was still here, he would always be near me, sleeping or doing homework, whatever. Regardless of what he was doing, I wasn't going to be alone on that roof for a while.

I watched as my parents tried to make him feel comfortable, Mom telling him to let her know if he needed anything and Dad assuring that he'd show him how the security system worked. No doubt they felt even the slightest bit uncomfortable. I knew I was. Little did Alex know, but as he ate, slept, and breathed in the same house as us, let alone this very room, he was opening a wound that had never healed. It didn't matter who the fourth person was under this roof… their presence would never heal the spot that was once my brother.


	4. Ubi Bene, Ibi Patria

**Note: **Okay, a few things I'd like to acknowledge…

*spoiler alert!*

*spoiler alert!*

*spoiler alert!*

Wait, at this point shouldn't you know that this will include spoilers if you haven't read all the books, let alone Scorpia Rising, considering it's been 4 years since Alex was involved with MI6?

*spoiler alert!*

*spoiler alert!*

1) I DIDN'T KNOW JACK STARBRIGHT DIED. I came across a summary for "Scorpia Rising" and, well, I'm torn. I did mention Jack in the second chapter but—being the perfectionist I am—I guess I'll have to make that Alex's roommate or something so that Miss Starbright really did die. SOB. So yes. "Jack" from here on out will be some guy Alex rooms with unless specified it's the girl Jack. Please please please remember that!

2) People have favorited this story! Yay, thank you! I would like to see a review from you folks though, you know, to tell me why you are amazing and like it enough to keep updated with it(:

Sorry for the long notes and if my chapters get long, sorry about that too. But I hope the story's appealing enough that you don't care! I own nothing but the products of my imagination and if you review, I will truly love you forever. Seriously. You don't realize how much one small comment can mean to me. Now for what you actually clicked the link for…

Chapter Four - Ubi Bene, Ibi Patria (Where You Feel Good, There Is Your Home)

-Alex-

I didn't know what to do with myself. I was standing in the middle of the guest bedroom—_my _room—feeling at lost. Joseph and Margot had left me to settle in and Addie was nowhere to be found. I didn't feel entirely comfortable sitting in the chair or on the bed… I didn't feel comfortable touching anything. Everything felt alien and an insane part of me feared that if I laid a hand on something, I'd be blown to pieces, having set off a trap meant for intruders.

Intruders. Was I an intruder? Though I preferred not to dwell on it, I knew that I was the subject being discussed earlier when Addie had come home. I knew that the Daniels family was just as apprehensive about my presence as I was. Clearly, I was disturbing their space and although Joseph and Margot were making an effort to make me feel at home, I wasn't sure about Addie.

No, she hadn't come off outright rude but it was apparent she would take time adjusting to me as well. From what I'd seen so far, she was that "independent character" Mrs. Jones had described to me and it was only because she'd spoken. If Addie had been a schoolmate of mine back home, I never would have guessed she was a secret agent, especially if I never talked to her. Instead, I probably wouldn't have thought her to be anything more than the one girl that girls wanted to be and hang around and boys wanted to date. She could pass for one if she tried what with her looks, house, and the Audi Coupe and Range Rover in their driveway. These people definitely weren't entirely low-key.

Something made me gravitate towards the hall and approach the next room. Underneath the sullenness and anxiety, I felt like I at least had to try to be on good terms with Addie. If I had to protect her (the thought was still freshly bitter in my mind), what good would it be if we disliked each other?

She was sitting on her window seat, her leg propped up on a bunch of fluffy pillows. I noticed that her cast was adorned with colorful signatures and messages. She seemed to be staring out the glass while her fingers braided her hair, nimbly and swiftly.

"When do you get it off?"

Addie jumped and her head whipped around. Her eyes changed quickly: first they widened with surprise, narrowed in suspicion, and then clouded over with something else. She glanced away, quickly tying the braid. "They say I can probably have it off in two weeks. But I'd still have to go through physical therapy." I hadn't paid much attention before, but now that I really looked, I could see some of her other injuries: there was a fading bruise on her jaw and stitched cuts on her hands. I knew all too well how that felt.

I nodded, realizing too late that she still wasn't looking at me. Then she asked, "Is this your first time here?"

Thinking she meant Virginia, I replied, "Yeah, it is." _It's wonderful how welcoming some of the people are here, _I said silently. I knew it was harsh, so I added, "I haven't gotten to look around much, though. After arriving at the airport we went straight here."

Addie smiled a bit and shrugged. "That's okay, I know you have this case to work on but I'm sure you'll get to do some sightseeing on the side. There's plenty of that with being an agent, eh?" She looked up at me.

I found myself smirking. An inside joke for spies… great. I decided to ask a question that seemed proper enough to keep the conversation going, from her side at least: "Have you been working for the CIA long?"

And that did it. Though things were still a bit awkward between us, asking something she was comfortable with was the right way to go. We were both agents so she couldn't have felt like she was revealing top secret material, and both of us thought that it would help us get to know each other better. What _Addie _didn't know was that I already knew plenty about her. As I listened, I compared the information coming out of her mouth to the information I'd seen on her files. The only thing she never came close to mentioning was Joshua Daniels, her brother.

Dinner came and went much faster and smoother than I'd expected. It was almost funny that it was a classic American meal of burgers and fries. Joseph had tried to be funny and poked fun by asking if I'd ever had such a course. We'd all managed to maintain a chat between bites about me, Joseph and Margot in the field, a bit about Addie (in and out of the field), and me again. I attempted to steer the conversation away from me, since there were many things I didn't want to think or talk about. As a result, I learned that Margot had been an excellent agent; she worked close to the head of the CIA. Joseph had been—and still was—a tech whiz that worked in The Directorate of Science and Technology ("directorate" was the CIA's fancy way of saying "branch", according to him). Now they had sort of "retired", Margot working behind a desk and Joseph only going in some days. Secretly I knew it was because of what happened to their son. Like me, Addie had grown up practically training for this lifestyle doing martial arts, learning other languages, participating in sports, but never actually started doing real spy work until sixteen… And neither of her parents mentioned Joshua.

I couldn't sleep that night. I was full from the two burgers and handfuls of fries that I'd eaten but my mind was reeling. I was lying on my back, staring up at the blank ceiling while the sky outside was darkening. I had done the same thing on the plane here, wondering what Addie and her parents were like and thinking about Castillo, but now that I was here and had met them… There were new worries and questions fresh in my mind.

Tossing and turning onto my side, my eyes landed on the suitcase standing in the corner. The edge of the folder I'd been given earlier stuck out of one of the pockets. After my mission had been explained to me, I didn't look through the contents much. I knew I was never going to close my eyes so instead of thinking about, well, everything, I got up and grabbed it. I had to stop sulking sooner or later and if I wasn't going to sleep, I might as well use my time.

Taking a deep breath, I sat down at the desk and turned on the lamp. Then I opened the folder and began to read.

* * *

-Addie-

The next morning, I embarrassed myself. I'd fallen asleep late the night before because of my preoccupied brain and gotten up minutes before my alarm went off. I felt like a zombie. After grabbing my towel and heading to the bathroom, I had been stupid enough to just open the door—

"Oh my God." Alex was completely naked except for the towel wrapped around his waist—one of _my_ towels that Mom must have given him, I noticed briefly. He'd obviously just gotten out of the shower because his blond hair was damp and ruffled like he'd towel-dried it. Against my will, my eyes strayed to his torso where a scar stood out over his heart. I recognized what kind of bullet wound it was, if it even was from a bullet. Awed, I was going to ask how he got it when he said,

"You didn't knock."

Feeling guilty not just for walking in on him but staring at his chest, I glanced up to meet his eyes. They were dark brown, amused but not angry like I'd expected. I felt the blood rushing up to my cheeks. "I-I know…" I stammered. "I didn't mean to. I'm sorry—"

"It's okay, I was just leaving," he said, shrugging. He grabbed his clothes and politely squeezed past me. I hoped he didn't notice how I stepped away from him like he was infected with something. As he passed by, a whiff of something clean and fresh wafted through the air and I couldn't stop myself from breathing it in as I shut the door behind me.

Why hadn't I checked to see if the light was on? Why did I forget that we had a guest living with us? He did say last night that he'd get up before me. I tried to get the image of Alex's sculpted arms and chest out of my mind as I did my morning routine. That scar was peculiar and shiny against the skin had looked so tough and hard after years of brutal missions… I turned the handle in the shower all the way to the left in hopes of burning away these unwelcome thoughts.

It wasn't until later that it occurred to me that the only reason I'd walked in on Alex was because he hadn't locked the door. This very fact floated around in my mind as I went to the kitchen, dressed in cut-off shorts, a zip-up hoodie, and a worn pair of Adidas, hungry for food. I saw Alex sitting at the breakfast bar and was relieved to see him fully clothed in a sweatshirt and jeans. Then I realized that he was eating a plate of what Dad called his "famous toast and eggs." The funny thing about it was that by "famous" he meant "only" because it was all he could cook besides microwave stuff. Being a tech whiz didn't necessarily mean knowing how to operate the stovetop.

Alex and I didn't say much besides quiet "Good morning" and Dad was the one that talked all the way to school. He made sure Alex understood the information he'd been given (coincidentally, he had all the same classes as me) and assured him that he'd like my school and friends. "See ya later, kiddos," he called as Alex shut the door to the Audi.

"Ready?" I asked him, nervously eyeing the blonde-haired girl approaching us from behind him. He nodded, shifting his backpack from one shoulder to the other.

"Hi Addie," Kylie greeted, the cheeriness in her voice reminding me of my dad's. Her bright eyes went to Alex and widened the slightest bit. "Who's your friend?"

Before I could introduce him, Alex beat me to it. "Hello. I'm Alex." He gave her what looked to be a smile.

"Oh. Hi Alex." Kylie smiled back and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, something she never did. "I'm Kylie."

"He's an exchange student," I jumped in. "He's staying with my family for… a little while." I saw that some students around us were also taking notice of the new kid. That's how it was here—people knew when someone was a transfer, exchange student or anything of that sort. Arianna called them "fresh meat." Did she mean that sadistically? I had no idea.

We headed inside, Kylie oohing and aahing at the answers Alex provided to her questions. A few more friends of mine met up with us and all got to meet him and, of course, were all fascinated by the fact that he was British. Actually, that was probably why everyone kept asking him questions, even repeating some, just to hear him talk. You would've thought we'd never had an exchange student by the way people swarmed around him. The one thing that bothered me though was that he didn't seem upset by it. During dinner last night he had seemed a little fidgety about discussing himself and his life… Now, he responded to people with ease and calmness. Maybe it was because they were asking the wrong questions; they weren't prodding him about any of his missions since he was just an ordinary guy to them.

My teachers were the only ones that weren't as infatuated with Alex as everyone else. For once, I was thankful for the busyness with the lesson plans and taking up any time that could be used to get to know him. But I had to admit that I was envious when he had a fluent conversation in French with Madame Landry during third period. Having started learning the language when I was eight, I had always been the most fluent in AP French. Now I wasn't the only one who could have inside jokes with her.

"Are you okay?" Derek asked me later once the bell rang for lunch. I took my time answering his question and gathering my stuff.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said, looking at him. "Why?"

Derek nodded towards Alex who was waiting by the door as two girls stopped to talk to him. "He's definitely gotten a lot more attention than any other exchange student has in the past four years."

I gazed at him while he wasn't looking at me, remembering the thing we'd had last year. He was still cute and had that sensitivity most boys seemed destitute of. So far, he was the only one that had taken notice of my unusual silence today. "Sure, but it doesn't bother me," I lied. "It's better than people ignoring him."

He didn't appear to be convinced but didn't push it. My group of friends and I took our lunches and went outside to sit in the square and enjoy the sun. I didn't have any classes with Arianna in the morning so I wasn't surprised when she pulled me aside—well, _dragged _considering my leg—to grill me about "the British guy."

"He's _living_ with you?" The incredulity in her voice made me clamp my hands over my ears. I glanced around to make sure no one was giving us strange looks, especially Alex.

"Yes," I hissed, "but seriously, Ari, keep your voice down!"

Her manicured nails dug into my arm as she gripped me. "But Addie! He is _divine_. If I were you, I'd be sneaking into his room at night…" She ignored my groans and continued, "Have you even seen him with his shirt off yet?"

I frowned. Did she have to ask that? Maybe she'd read my mind. I didn't want to lie to her, yet… "Why does it matter?" I asked, trying not to sound defensive.

"He hasn't seen _you_ shirtless, has he?"

"What? No! Are you insane? Why would he?" I blushed at the thought.

Arianna eyed me. "Because you're pretty, Add, and all hope is lost if he likes you." Sometimes I wondered why this girl had become one of my best friends. It was probably because she supplied the crazy teenage girl stuff I occasionally lacked. I was flattered that she called me pretty, yes, but also a bit peeved that she'd think I was competition, let alone that Alex was some prize to be won. I wanted to tell her that he'd never have time for a girl with the mission on his hands, but it wouldn't have been any use.

"Chill, Arianna," I sighed. What was the point in saying I hadn't seen him with his shirt off? I told her about this morning and immediately wanted to take it back when her eyes went wide and her mouth dropped open. She looked like she wasn't breathing. "Are you breathing? Arianna, it's not that big of a deal…" I could see she was trying not to scream.

"Details! Details, details, details!" She nagged me as I turned on my heel to walk away. I didn't want to be the reason why everyone thought someone was being murdered during lunch if she did scream. But I saw that there wasn't much to walk back to; Alex was busy talking to a small group and others were hurriedly doing last minute homework. I looked at Arianna and her pout and rolled my eyes. "Well, okay, he only had a towel on…" She squealed and I sighed.

It was going to be a long couple of weeks.


	5. De Nihilo Nihil

**Note:** Sorry, it's not a very good chapter but I didn't want yall to wait too long.

_blue-skies-green-eyes: _That's what I thought originally! but then something I read said they were brown... ahh, oh well. I'll leave them brown and gorgeous. Thank you anyway(:

_Blond Dude 42: _Right, sorry about that! I meant to mention it in the 3rd chapter but I completely spaced.

_awsomosityrox: _The only Latin I know consists of terms based on rhetoric and logic like "ad hominem" and such hahhah. So you are probably right about the title of the 2nd chapter because these titles are Latin phrases I looked up. After all, it is the internet xD I am much better in Spanish if that counts!

I own nothing except the products of my imagination and review, review, review please! :)

Chapter Five – De Nihilo Nihil (Nothing Comes From Nothing)

-Addie-

"Addie! Alex! Are you ready yet?"

I stuck my head outside my bedroom door and yelled, "One second!" Then I hopped over as fast as I could towards my closet and grabbed my Bryant High School Eagles Swimming shirt, yanking it on. With one last look in the mirror, I hurried downstairs to find my mom and Alex waiting for me. Alex was wearing the same shirt as me. It was a good thing Dad had lent it to him; otherwise people would peg him as a supporter of "the other guys." At our swim meets, if you weren't wearing red, gold, or anything Eagles related, you were automatically an enemy. It was no exception tonight because we were swimming against Cleveland High School, our rival. This was our last meet and our school was determined to make it to the state championship.

"Thank God it's Friday," I mumbled as we left the house. During the swim season, every Friday was a meet and ever since the gas station incident, I'd had to suffer sitting like a lump potato through the last two, cheering my team on and wishing I could hop into the pool with them. This was Alex's first time and I'd reassured him that he picked a good time to come considering who we were up against.

Today was the Friday after he and Ben first arrived, which was on Monday. He and I had grown used to each other and I always made sure the bathroom was unoccupied before going in. We weren't exactly the best of friends but we didn't act awkwardly around each other anymore. One time we had worked on homework together for a few hours and I'd realized he was smarter than he let people see. That gave me the impression that he was sometimes a secluded person and honestly, it made me relieved to know he wasn't out there always interacting with people.

At school, students had also finally gotten used to the idea of him being around. A few girls, like Arianna, still couldn't keep their eyes off him but it certainly wasn't as bad as it was the first day. I was still bombarded with questions about what Alex did at home and what kind of boxers he wore. At least Noelle Stacy wasn't asking me to swipe his body wash anymore. Whenever that girl was around, I felt ridiculously _clean _compared to her reputation.

"Have fun and be safe," Mom called while Alex and I got out of the car. _Be safe?_ That was a first; she had never said that to me unless it was an assignment I was going on. I looked back to say something funny when I caught her meeting Alex's eyes. Something besides a look was exchanged between them and I was about to ask when someone grabbed my arm.

"You're here!" Kylie was jumping up and down in excitement. Like me, she was decked out in Eagles gear. "Now hurry up! I already saved us some spots." And with that the three of us pushed through the growing crowd of spectators towards the pool. Everywhere we looked was red and gold and the occasional green or white of Cleveland High. Some people bore face paint and others, like a few senior boys, had gone all out and decorated their bodies, wearing nothing more than shorts. Inside the pool building the school spirit was more prominent; no matter what side you were on (red and gold or green and white) there were banners and posters screaming support for the teams. This was how excited we could get for swimming.

Our high school was one of the lucky few that had an Olympic-size pool. Eight lanes of cold, chlorinated water stretched fifty meters before us, split halfway down the middle by a metal barrier to hold events on one side and diving on the other. As usual, I found the sudden urge to dive in, breaking that line between air and water, and swim with the rest of the swimmers that were doing warm-ups. I took a deep breath of the heavy, warm air that stank of chlorine and sighed.

"You miss it, don't you?" Alex asked me as Kylie pushed our way through the top of the bleachers. She'd gotten us seats smack dab in the middle, knowing I'd need to see everything. I had told her before that I was willing to climb to the top despite my crutches.

I smiled. "Of course. It's practically the only sport offered in school that I can actually do." I sat down between the walkway and Alex, occupying the spot in front of me with my leg.

He raised his brows in surprise. "Not even soccer? Or gymnastics?" He'd probably expected me to be sportier.

Laughing, I shook my head. "I'm alright in soccer but I'm not that flexible either. What about you?"

"Soccer? I love it. Gymnastics? Never tried and never will."

Our laughter was interrupted by the announcement of the first event and I craned my neck to get a good look. I watched my friends milling about, wearing those big fuzzy jackets that were designed to keep our muscles warm and either racing to get their event cards or lining up behind the starting blocks for the first medley.

"What are they doing?" Alex asked, gazing at the swimmers on the blocks. I'd forgotten he didn't know too much about how the meets worked.

After grabbing an event card from Kylie, I proceeded to explain to him who swam what and how events were categorized. Between live heats and exhibition heats, the former were counted for points while exhibition heats depended on times. I swam in both types because not only did I want to win, but I wanted to knock off even a few tenths of a second from my best times. I pointed out to Alex certain swimmers who were good at different strokes while throwing in a cheer here and there. It wasn't until I was getting to explain the order of medleys when I noticed him staring at me.

"What?" I managed to ask, willing my cheeks to stop heating up.

"Nothing," he answered, smiling quickly. "I just don't think I've ever seen anyone get so excited about things like this."

I suddenly realized what he meant. "Was I talking too much? I'm sorry, it's just that there's so much to these events… I'll quit talking—" Why did I always blabber and stutter whenever I did something wrong around him?

He chuckled. "No, it's fine. I don't think you're talking too much. But I did mean what I said about never meeting anyone like you." I thought I saw something flicker across his eyes but before I could comprehend it, the people around us were screaming and cheering. He looked away from me as I opened my mouth to speak so I had no choice but to do the same.

I looked towards the pool and saw that one of the events had finished. Even though I didn't know which one it was, I clapped and hollered anyway. I turned back to Alex but he wasn't looking at me. In fact, by the way he was in deep conversation with Kylie and glancing at the iPhone in his hand, it seemed that he had forgotten about me.

* * *

Two hours, one Sprite, one Fanta, four bags of Doritos and a lot of screaming later, I was leaving the girls' locker room, having stopped by to congratulate my friends. Bryant High School had won the meet by just a few points and the mixed spirits of exultation, disappointment, and a dash of good sportsmanship surrounded the pool area.

"So how was your first experience at one of our high school's minor sporting events?" I asked Alex as I made my way towards him and Kylie.

"Minor? You mean this is nothing compared to your major sports?"

Kylie scoffed. "You see these people totally painted or dressed in red and gold? Yeah, you should see one of our football games."

"People get into fights and make bets all the time," I added with a shrug.

Alex nodded his head at something behind me. "_They _look like they're making a bet."

Kylie and I turned to see what he was looking at, then looked at each other and burst out laughing. I was the first one to recover so I said, "The two guys trying to look discreet as they exchange money on school property with all these people around? Alex, what they're doing is probably dope-related." I grinned as he gave a dismissive shrug.

My cell phone rang and I had to take a moment to compose myself before answering. "Hullo?"

"Addie? It's Mom."

"Oh hey, Mom! You should've been here, the meet was amazing!" I grinned at Alex and Kylie. "Our new diver, the freshman, was actually really good. He's improved a lot since last week—"

"That's great, hon. Listen, I'm going to be a little late picking you up, okay? Don't get a ride from anyone else, just wait for me." There was something to her tone, a little edge that was between firmness and irritation. "Wait for me, alright?"

I frowned and could feel Alex watching me. "Okay, will do." After hanging up, I explained to him what was going on. "I don't really feel like hanging around here though. I need to sit or walk, not stand."

After Kylie said goodbye and left us, we decided to go to the playground that was just down the street. There were still tons of red- and gold-clad spectators wandering around and chattering about the meet. I could've been mingling with them but I wanted to visit the swings my dad used to always push me on. Besides, I knew that the weird conversation with Mom wouldn't cease to distract me from anything else.

"Are you sure you want to walk all the way over there?" Alex asked as he walked beside me. I could see that he was unsure about the pace we were going at but I had learned to move quickly with the crutches. When he saw the look I gave him he just smirked.

It was silent for a little while. The weather had decided to be ambiguous today and was alternating between cloudy and sunny, depending on what part of the sidewalk you were on. At the moment the sun was halfway behind a massive cloud, shedding its light on both our blond heads. It was only the end of April but I was suddenly longing for a weekend at Virginia Beach.

"So what doyou like to do? Other than swimming."

"Well…" I bit my lip, knowing that revealing too much about myself would lead to the most untouchable subject I had locked away in my head. "I draw sometimes. I'm not very good but when I'm bored it's a good distraction."

"But not anymore."

I glanced at him. "What do you mean?"

Alex gazed around at the trees, their branches rustling with his hair in the light breeze. "I haven't seen any of your art in your room. Not from the one time I was in there anyway." He looked at me, the expression on his face incomprehensible.

I didn't know how he had made such an observation from when I'd asked him to retrieve a ruler for me the night we studied together, but I guess it shouldn't have surprised me. "And you? What do you do in your free time?" We had arrived at the playground, which turned out to be deserted, and I leaned on one crutch, waiting for a reply.

Suddenly something bright green shot out of nowhere and ran between Alex and me, catching both of us off guard. "Whoa!" Alex exclaimed, reaching out to grab what appeared to be a kid. "Slow down there, buddy, you might… Hey, are you okay?"

"Riley?" I recognized the seven-year-old in the green soccer jersey. He lived on my street and I often went over to his house to return the soccer ball that continually ended up on our lawn. The big blue eyes that were usually mischievous and playful were brimming with tears he was trying to hold back. He had always been the kid trying to prove everyone that he was tough enough to handle himself. "Riley, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," he answered stubbornly, ducking out of Alex's grip.

"Hey kid!" We turned to see three boys, probably a year or two younger than us, sauntering down the sidewalk towards us. I knew right away that they were bullies… I hated bullies. I'd had to deal with a couple of them when other smaller kids came to me knowing what I could do with my hands and feet or whatever materials were lying around.

It didn't matter that they were wearing backwards baseball caps and one of them was on a skateboard. They might've come off as typical teenage boys but by the way they were snickering and grinning like idiots, it was obvious they were troublemakers. The thought of them pestering Riley made me clench my fists. "Kid, you forgot your toy!"

"I don't want it," Riley began but something was flung towards his feet. It appeared to be a red Power Ranger and it was headless.

"You might wanna find its head," the guy called. They were just yards in front of us now and it was clear that they didn't care about the audience they had.

"Leave him alone, you jerk." I wanted to say something much more vulgar but not with Riley around.

The one who had spoken eyed me up and down, a nasty smirk on his face. "What are you, his mother? You look a little young." His eyes flickered towards Alex. "Is he the baby daddy?"

It took everything not to launch myself at him. "You're disgusting. I swear, I'm going to—"

He feigned a yawn. "Sorry sweetheart, but it looks like you can't do anything. Not with that leg."

I was about to threaten him again when a cool voice said, "But I can." I looked over to see that Alex had stepped in front of Riley almost protectively and was staring down the boys.

The guy looked at him for a second before he and his friends broke down in fits of laughter. He pretended to wipe away tears from his eyes. "That's funny, man, real funny. You think you're tough, huh? There's advantage in numbers, y'know."

I coughed and I could see the corner of Alex's mouth lift. We both knew that that statement wasn't always true. "You're going to apologize to Riley and hand over some money to pay for that toy. Got that?"

This time the bullies were glaring at him. They didn't like being bossed around. "Hell no. It's not our fault he bought a cheap, fake toy."

"The only thing around here that's cheap and fake is your toughness and thinking you're bad-asses. Come on, Alex, they're not worth our time." I'd had enough of them. Maybe when I had my cast off I was going to find a way to finally stop their bullying. I remembered the last time I'd used a guy's Taser against him and returned it to the owner—his police officer father.

"Do I have to treat you like little children and count to three?" Alex's voice was deadly calm. "Give the kid a couple bucks and we can go our separate ways."

"Alex, I don't think—"

The middle guy (by now I was assuming he was the leader) chortled and stepped forward until he was standing two feet from Alex. "It's not going to go your way, man."

"One…" Alex stood there, still keeping his eyes him. "Two…"

"Come on, Keenan, let's go," one of the other two said. They were shifting uncomfortably as if they were sensing something bad was going to happen.

"Three."

Keenan held out his arms in a "Come at me, bro" kind of way and when Alex didn't attack him, he turned around. "See? I told you—" His boastful words were cut off by a kind of squeak.

I gaped at the picture before me. In a split second Alex had covered the distance between him and Keenan and now held him in a painful position: Keenan was on his knees with one of his arms twisted backward by Alex, whose hand was against Keenan's back. I knew that if Alex made one small move, he'd do extreme damage to the guy's shoulder.

"What are you waiting for?" Keenan wheezed, his eyes looking towards his friends desperately. After breaking from their stupor, they fumbled in their pockets and tossed several bills towards Alex who shook his head.

"Give it to Riley." Once they did as they were told, Alex released Keenan, shoving him a little roughly away from him. "If I ever hear about or see your stupid antics, I'll snap your shoulder for sure."

And with that, the three boys hurriedly walked away, Keenan rubbing his shoulder and waving away his friends' concern. I stared after them for a while before turning to face Alex. He wore a bemused look though he must've known what I was thinking. "You would've done the same," he said, not at all sounding defensive. I didn't say anything, knowing he was right.

"You alright there, Riley?" He reached out to touch the little boy's shoulder. Riley was clutching the money in one hand, the Power Ranger in the other. He had been staring at them and when Alex spoke, he looked up at him with wide eyes.

"How'd you do that?" From the way his gaze kept switching back and forth between the toy and Alex, it was evident he was fascinated but freaked out at the same time.

Alex just laughed and I couldn't help but smile at him and the bewildered seven-year-old. "No worries, Riley. Let's just get you home."


	6. Flamma Fumo Est Proxima

**Note: **Hi guys. Unfortunately, this will be the last chapter for about two weeks. I have family flying in tonight and I go to California this Friday until July 7th. To compensate for the wait, I made this update a bit longer. I wanted to do more with it but I wanted to give yall something while I have the chance :)

_Nick10153: _Thank you very much! I try to update weekly beccause I don't want to keep readers waiting and it forces me to write everyday (good practice!)

_ItsAlexx _and _Owltalon: _Thank you, I'm glad you like it!

**Special thanks **to _Ragold, _aka _MetalGod14 _who has been an amazing & supportive reader since I began this! You rock (;

Chapter Six – Flamma Fumo Est Proxima (There's No Smoke Without Fire)

-Alex-

I was lying in bed, holding my AP Physics textbook above me. The Daniels family and I were supposed to be going to Virginia Beach in an hour so I'd decided to pass the time by studying for next week's upcoming test. The brand new iPod Mrs. Jones had generously supplied me with was softly playing U2's "Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own." It had come equipped especially for me with all the music from my iPod back home. I didn't want to say that she was winning me over for this involuntary mission but it was nice having a real piece of me here in America.

I was just reviewing centripetal force when there was a knock on the door. Peeking out from under the book, I saw Margot poking her head in. Blond-grey strands were escaping her bun, making her look harried and upset. "Sorry to bother you, Alex, but Agents Reyes and Daniels are here to see you."

I followed her downstairs to the kitchen where the two men were eating leftovers from breakfast. David stood at the breakfast bar, picking at a plate of eggs. Sitting next to him was Ben, munching on one of Margot's crepes. "Good morning, Alex," David greeted while Ben nodded at me.

"Hi." From where I stood by the doorway, the early rays of sunshine were filtering through the blinds of the kitchen windows and warming my skin. Margot touched my shoulder briefly before leaving the room.

"So you guys are going to the beach soon, huh?" Ben glanced pointedly at my outfit: a Nike t-shirt and red swim trunks.

I blinked. "Yeah. Are you?"

David waved a hand. "We're going to headquarters later. We stopped by to see how you're doing."

Thinking for a moment, I answered, "Well, I'm alive and breathing. The only danger I've come across is Mr. Schafer's horrid eyesight because for some odd reason, he repeatedly mistakes me for Tom Cruise. Tom Cruise! And the man's an art teacher. Only God knows how he ended up with that job." I shrugged. "Other than that, I'm fine."

The two men stared at me and I sighed. "Sorry. I just expected you to come by sooner. It's been a week since we got here."

Ben put down his fork and dabbed at his mouth with a napkin. "Yeah. Sorry about that, mate. We've been real busy with Castillo. We haven't gotten anywhere in this case and it's really killing us."

"So nothing peculiar or suspicious has happened yet?" David asked. "Nothing at all?"

I shook my head. "Nothing at all." I thought about the bullies Addie and I had encountered two days ago. They were the closest thing to a threat I had come across and there was no way they were associated with any kind of professional criminal work. It didn't take even one of _them _to figure that out.

He took a deep breath and passed a hand over his face. "Alright. There may even be chance that nothing _will _happen at all. I hate to admit it but if it's been this long…"

"What do you mean?" I glanced at Ben and could see that he was as shocked as I was. "Just because it's been—what, a few weeks?—since your failed mission, it doesn't mean that nothing will happen. The longer they take, the more scared you should be. Castillo's assassins are most likely professionals and professionals aren't always quick to finish the job. They're sadistic. They're relentless." The scar on my chest tingled faintly and I swallowed, struggling to block the images of the dreadful memory. _They're heartless. _"They would want to take their time."

"I know what an assassin does, Alex," David retorted, clearly annoyed. "I'm just saying that it's possible they moved on. Maybe they think she isn't worth it."

He was desperately hoping that the possibility was true. But I couldn't let him believe it for a second. "That's what they want you to think, David. You can't assume that Castillo simply called it off. You of all people should realize that. I'd think you were out there working day and night to make sure no one touched her."

"Alex…" There was a note of warning in Ben's tone.

David's eyes flared. "Actually, I _have _been working long hours, Rider. Addie is like a little sister to me; I would never let anyone hurt her." I was considering apologizing when he said, "What about you? I was told that you were reluctant to take this job on. The longer it takes for Castillo's men to act, the longer you have to stay here. You don't want that, do you?"

"David!"

Ignoring Ben, I focused my gaze on David. "I'm not going to let my homesickness and hatred for MI6 get in the way of protecting someone's life if that's what you mean."

"Is everything okay?" Margot walked in, glancing around at us. For a split second she looked exactly the way Addie had when she'd interrupted her parents and David in the kitchen. She didn't care much to hide the fact that she'd heard enough to know what was going on. "What are you bickering about?" she asked in an almost scolding manner.

"Nothing," the three of us answered. We all looked at each other while Margot raised a brow.

* * *

Later, I was sitting in the backseat of the Range Rover with Addie and we were starting our three-and-a-half-hour drive to Virginia Beach. It had only been a few minutes since leaving the house but both of us were already busy: my earphones were in and she was flipping through some teen magazine. I was mulling over the kitchen conversation and wondering why David had been thinking the way he was about the critical situation Addie was in. I could understand why he would be hopeful about her being forgotten, but being the brilliant agent she was, no one was going to overlook her.

I heard an expletive over Coldplay and turned to look at Addie, who looked unashamed that she had cursed in her parents' presence. Apparently she'd forgotten her sunglasses in her room. "Anyone have extras?" she asked. After a chorus of shaken heads, Joseph was forced to turn the car around since she couldn't stand being in the sun without anything to protect her eyes.

The tires screeched as he turned into a side street to return home. I mockingly shook my head at Addie, earning myself her stuck-out tongue. I volunteered to grab the sunglasses and hopped out the moment the car came to a stop. After punching the code into the keypad to the security system, I took the stairs three at a time to Addie's room.

It was never messy and I guess I didn't really expect it to be. If anything, I'd suspected her to be a neat freak. Her bright blue bed wasn't always made but everything else was organized and squeaky clean. Sometimes it was hard to believe that as perky and colorful as her room was, she came off as the kind of person that didn't care for girly, teenage things. The polka-dot curtains of the window seat were drawn, allowing the sun to blind me momentarily as I walked in. Blinking away spots, I found her Ray-Bans sitting on her dresser and snatched them. I was about to turn and leave when something caught my eye.

There was nothing about it that was alarmingly clear but I approached the window seat anyway. Addie kept three pillows and a blanket arranged neatly across the cushion. One of the pillows wasn't straight and upright like the other two; instead, it stood more like a diamond rather than a square. Even with her condition, she would have taken the time to properly place it the way she liked. She wouldn't have thrown it hastily without care.

But someone else did.

Stepping nearer, I assessed the area around the seat, feeling my pulse quicken. Nothing else appeared to be out of place except… the small white sensors blending into the corners of the window. I leaned closer, feeling the heat of the sun on my face, and realization hit me like ice cold water.

Both security devices had been tampered with. It wasn't obvious until I stared at it long enough because their brokenness was subtle. Immediately a series of images played in my head: an intruder disarming the window sensors, stepping on the seat into the room, knocking one of the pillows off in the process… Glancing around, I didn't know if anything had been taken, but that didn't matter. If this was the work of Castillo's men, they weren't looking to steal any valuables besides what was waiting in the car outside.

"What took you so long?" Addie asked when I finally returned. "They weren't so hard to find, were they?"

I handed her the sunglasses and raised my brow. "You're welcome."

She smiled sweetly and slid them on. "Thank you."

On the way to the beach, I texted Ben and explained to him what I saw in Addie's room. He told me not to panic or do anything rash (I wasn't going to anyway) and notified David, who said the same thing but with more urgency. I was to have a good time with the Daniels family while they stopped by to check the window out themselves.

I couldn't distract myself with music or games. Instead, staring out the window and losing myself in my thoughts was easier. I barely paid attention when Joseph decided to tell us a funny story that involved Addie scaling one of the taller trees in their backyard when she was nine. As they laughed I looked out the window, feeling a lump form in my throat. I couldn't get the thought of someone getting to Addie out of my head. To have her taken away from her loved ones, to let Joseph and Margot lose another child… Uneasiness and other sick emotions churned in my stomach. Just yesterday I had been in denial and figuring out how to tell MI6 "no more." Initially a part of me even hated Addie. Now, the break-in had been a sort of wakeup call.

I wasn't going to let her die, not if I could prevent it.

* * *

"So are you going to prom?" Addie was leaning back on her hands, lifting her face up to the sun. We were on the beach, soaking up the rays of the sun. Joseph and Margot were several yards behind us, lounging on beach chairs. I'd gotten so hot in my dark shirt I had to take it off within minutes of arriving. Addie had also shed her shirt and shorts, revealing a turquoise two-piece that left more of her skin exposed than I had ever intended to see.

"Prom? No, I don't think so."

"Why not? Hasn't anyone asked you?"

I squinted at her over my sunglasses (provided by Mrs. Jones). "What makes you think anyone's asked me?" It wasn't as if she was wrong; every day last week someone had found a way to bring the teenage fantasy into a conversation. "What about you?"

"Me?" she scoffed. "Probably not. There's no one for me to go with..."

"But it's your senior year, isn't it? You can go with your friends."

"Yes," she said slowly, "but there are other things more important to me than one night in an over-expensive ball gown gossiping about who'll win the plastic crowns." I chuckled and she scowled at me. "What?"

Shaking my head, I explained, "Nothing… You just seem so... cynical about certain things. Especially teenage girl things."

Addie smirked a little and shrugged. "I guess that's just who I am." A moment passed and then she asked, "How's it going with, you know, the Castillo thing? I don't know what your part is exactly since all I've seen you do is homework but…" Her tone had changed and I knew it was uncomfortable for her to bring it up.

I glanced out into the ocean and took a deep breath. "It's coming along alright. I'm actually not doing too much with the assignment because I have to keep up the pretense of being a foreign exchange student." _And protect you. _"But from what I know, he's as powerful as ever."

She reached up to move her sunglasses to the top of her head and hesitated. She looked like she wanted to say something but then decided against it, turning to look back at her parents who appeared to be asleep on their chairs.

"What's on your mind?" I asked. I had a few good guesses as to what she was thinking about.

"Huh? Oh… it's just…" Addie shook her head. "It's nothing to worry about."

I looked at her for a moment before saying, _"Rien ne pèse tant que un secret." _I wasn't sure why it occurred to me to say the proverb in French, but it wasn't like she didn't understand.

The corner of her mouth twitched. "Who says I've got a secret?"

I smiled a little. "Everyone's got a secret."

"Then you must have one." Addie's eyes weren't accusing but more curious. "But the only way to keep a secret is to say nothing."

"_Ç'est dommage," _I replied, feigning disappointment.

She looked away but not before smirking at me. _"Ç'est la vie." _Without warning, she grabbed a fistful of sand and tossed it at me. I ducked, feeling bits of it spray my hair and shoulders. "Sorry," she said, grinning and not looking apologetic at all. "I was just trying to make myself feel better."

"You want help with that?" I challenged, scooping up some of my own sand. Addie squealed, scooting away from me as I hurled handfuls of it at her.

"You can't do that! I'm injured; you're totally taking advantage of me!"

I laughed at her. "You took advantage of me when I wasn't expecting it! What are we, in third grade?" We continued scrambling around on the beach, upgrading from dry sand to wet and attracting the attention of nearby people. Someone even threw me an empty cup to pour water all over Addie who was giggling so hard she made no sound.

I'd thought I was doing a pretty good job when suddenly she stopped and lay on her side, grasping her broken leg. "Ow!" she gasped, flinching in pain. "Wow that hurts…"

"Are you okay?" I dropped the two cups of water I was holding and hurried over, dropping to my knees before her. "What happened?"

She sucked in a breath, avoiding my gaze. "Nothing, I just…" she began and—

A torrent of ocean water hit me square in the face. The impact and surprise knocked me backwards and the air was filled with maniacal laughter. Wiping my eyes, I saw that she was high-fiving a little boy and girl with a plastic bucket nearby. "Nice job, guys!"

I grinned and shook the water from my hair. "You got me, Daniels."

Addie's eyes glittered. "Oh, it's Daniels now, is it?" Her entire body, like mine, was covered in sand and was shiny with dampness. We looked messier than the kids who were being reckless and jumping in and out of the water.

I tore my eyes away from hers. "I'm going to get us some drinks." I pushed myself up and attempted to brush off some sand while I hiked up the beach to the Virginia Beach Boardwalk. Luckily the bills Joseph had given me had managed to remain dry during the sand/water fight.

I didn't have a hard time finding somewhere to buy a couple sodas; there was _everything _here. To my right and left, three miles of a wide concrete walkway and bike paths spread along the oceanfront. Lining the Boardwalk were bustling bunches of hotels, restaurants, museums, amusement rides, and entertainment stages. Masses of people were scattered on the stretches of sand and walking in search of good tans and tasty hot dogs. The hotel windows glittered in the early afternoon sunshine while palm trees struggled to reach their untouchable heights. Up ahead there was a bar and only a few people occupied the stools. Deciding to try my luck there, I marched up and stopped next to a man who sat by himself, dressed in jeans, boots, and a heavy jacket. I thought vaguely that he must've been scorching.

"You look a little young for a Bud Light." The bartender was a plump man with an outrageously long goatee.

I grinned and shook my head. "You got me," I joked. "I was wondering if you had two Pepsis." As the man busied himself behind the counter, I turned to the guy next to me and commented, "It's a little hot for jeans, don't you think?"

He seemed startled that I was talking to him and looked down at himself. "Huh? Oh yeah," he said with a sheepish smile. "I didn't know I was going to be stuck here today. I, uh, came here when my wife asked me last minute to come from work."

Nodding, I asked, "She didn't bring a change of clothes for you?" I shook my head. "Where _is _your wife?"

"Um…" He scratched the back of his head before waving his hand in a vague direction. I frowned. What was with him? The man was practically jumping with nervousness in his seat.

"I'm Alex, by the way," I introduced myself, half-hoping a simple introduction would calm him. I thanked the bartender when he slid the cans towards me.

He blinked. "I'm, uh, I'm… John." Before I could say anything, he suddenly asked, "Is that your girlfriend over there?"

"Who?" I followed his finger behind me where I had come from. In the distance, Addie was sitting on the beach, building a sand castle with the little boy and girl from earlier. He must've seen us fooling around. "Oh, her? No, she's my cousin," I answered casually, forgetting my real cover.

"I thought you were an exchange student."

I froze with the Pepsi halfway to my lips. Looking towards him, I saw that John's eyes had widened as he backpedaled. "I—I mean, someone told me… My daughter. She's in high school and she told me they got a British exchange student. I guess I—I just assumed…" His forehead was beading with sweat.

My mind instantly flashed back to Addie's window. The intruder had been careless and was an amateur at best. Though, why someone sent to spy on Addie would be mediocre, I wasn't sure. Someone else could have bought this man's spluttered excuse, but it didn't sound right to my ears.

Absurdly, I thought about how Tom Harris would've described how I was feeling right now: my spidey senses were tingling.

Suddenly, I felt sick.

"Oh… I don't feel so good," I groaned, bending over and clutching my stomach. "It's so hot here… I think I need—I think I need water—" I pitched forward, grabbing for John at the last minute. My hand caught his jacket as I stumbled to the floor and he nearly fell over. A glint of something caught my eye, confirming my suspicions.

"Whoa!" he exclaimed, catching himself. He quickly tugged his jacket closed before standing up. "Are you okay there, son?" John hastily wiped his palm on his jeans before offering his hand.

I pushed myself up and took a huge gulp of soda. "I'm alright!" Whipping out my Sidekick 2 (again, generously supplied by Mrs. Jones), I turned to the beach. "This is really quite a beautiful view. I have to send a picture to my mum." After snapping the photo, I snatched the soda cans and nodded at his wide-eyed expression. "You have a good one!"

"Meet someone interesting?" Addie asked, jerking her head towards the bar when I sat down next to her and handed her the unopened can.

I looked down at my Sidekick as it sent a text message. The picture attached was of Virginia Beach and the bewildered face of "John." "No." I forced a smile. "I didn't meet anyone interesting at all."

* * *

**Note: **So I decided to do a little something to allow you guys to be involved in my writing... I've seen other writers do some things and I figured I'd give it a try! I would love to hear everyone's responses and thoughts to the following:

How do you think Alex and Addie's relationship will play out?

What about that John guy? Do you think it was right of Alex to do what he did or was it a weird coincidence?

Any ideas on what's coming soon?

Does anyone wanna take a guess on what was said in French between Alex and Addie? (online translators are totally fine! haha. I will reveal the translations in the next update)


	7. Eiusdem Generis

**Note:** Hey yall, I'm back from a fantastic nine days in LA! I have tan lines and I'm sunburnt but I'm ready to write! I missed Addie and Alex :'( You guys too, of course. Quick thoughts on this chapter: this one may seem a lil slow but it was intended to be raw and intimate, focusing on the growing bond between the two characters... and I also figured it would be nice to finally reveal what happened to Joshua, Addie's brother haha. It still feels like there's something missing in this update so beware, I may be tweaking things a bit.

Translations from the last chapter: _"Rien ne pèse tant que un secret." - Nothing weighs more than a secret._

_"Ç'est dommage" - What a shame._

_"Ç'est la vie" - That's life._

_YK: _Oh hello, it's always nice to know that there's someone out there who _doesn't _like my story :) All the more reason to keep going and try harder, right? Though i'm not going to throw a tantrum and become overly defensive, I _would _like to point out that while you're correct about there being a number of AR fanfics with Mary-Sue spies, you seem to have missed my reason and motivation for writing my own. The existence of another fanfic w/ a female role opposite Alex Rider shouldn't be a discouragement to writers with a similar idea. For me, it's an opportunity to put my writing to the test and make my creativity and skills stand out. By the looks of your review, you may not have read past the first chapter because all your words are focused on is the fact that I happpen to have a female lead and _not _on my writing technique or plot. Regardless, I am only more motivated to continue this fanfiction and make it unique, all the while using ALL feedback to better my writing skills. Whether or not you're even reading this, I appreciate the time taken to voice your thoughts :)

_Mary A. Evans: _Yes, you are very right about that! I thought about that while writing the dialogue but I figured Alex would correct himself as to not confuse Addie... but now that I look back, it probably would've been funny to include that. darn.

Thank you all for your amazing reviews! I enjoyed reading your thoughts on what's coming up next and the relationship between Addie & Alex.

xx

Chapter Seven – Eiusdem Generis (Of the Same Kind)

-Addie-

"Test _facedown, _Mr. Andrews, or I'll dock twenty points off your final exam _and _assign you a project on quantum mechanics."

Phillip Andrews, who sat two seats in front of me, straightened up and flipped his test over. Even if he _had_ read some of the questions, I doubted looking at them in advance would've helped him. He'd never been the brightest kid on the block yet somehow he'd managed to maintain a C at best in AP Physics all year.

Today was Wednesday, Mr. O'Brien's favorite day because it was the day he gave out pop quizzes and tests. Apparently there was some advantage since it wasn't too early in the week when we were still "recovering from the weekend's hangover" or too late when we were "looking forward to the weekend's hangover."

"Miss Daniels?" I looked up to see Mr. O'Brien gazing at me. To this day I couldn't get over the fact that he looked so much like Jon Cryer from that TV show _Two and a Half Men _except with wired glasses and a permanent frown. He was much taller too, well over six feet. "I hope you'll do better on this test. Your score on the last one wasn't so pretty."

I cringed. This class had always been one of the hardest for me and when I'd decided to slack off two months ago, it had earned me a solid D. I was hoping I would do better this time because I had Alex, who seemed to understand traveling at light speed the way I understood swimming the butterfly.

I waited for Mr. O'Brien to pass before sneaking a glance over my shoulder. Because of alphabetical order, Alex sat in the back of the room, next to Noelle Stacy, unfortunately. He'd admitted to me a few days ago that he disliked her (though he played nice) and I constantly had to bite back the urge to prance around her singing, "He doesn't like you, he doesn't like you!" like a six-year-old. Come to think of it, it was a _huge _relief that he hadn't fallen for the stunning, aspiring gymnast. Just the thought of him looking at her the way other boys did sent annoyance and something else rushing through me…

Alex had been chatting politely with Noelle and suddenly turned his head, meeting my eyes. It took me a moment to force a smile onto my face as a "good luck" sort of gesture but before I could see if he returned it, Mr. O'Brien had moved in my line of vision. When he finally made his way to the front of the room, I saw that Alex was no longer looking at me but the thick packet of paper on his desk.

"You have from when I say 'Go' until the bell rings." Turning back to my own desk, I took a deep breath. "Ready… Set…" I gripped my pencil and the corner of the test, all of a sudden feeling unable to focus on the one hundred points waiting for me to gain or lose them.

"Go."

* * *

Alex was waiting for me at the classroom door once the bell had rung and all the tests had been collected. Neither of us said a word as we walked down the hallway together, probably because neither of us wanted to say it first. From the frustrated silence that had endured through the test and after the bell rang, it wasn't hard to tell that everyone was thinking the same thing.

"That was horrible."

"No kidding. I thought about giving up halfway through."

"Halfway through?" Alex scoffed. "I thought about giving up after the first page!"

I playfully elbowed him. "I'm sure you did better than me." As we pushed through students to get to the front doors, a brilliant idea occurred to me. "Hey, I've got an idea!"

"Oh God."

"Shut up!" I smacked his arm while he cackled. "Seriously, I'm in need of some fattening ice cream after that brutal test. Why don't we walk down to the McDonald's down the street? It's just past the playground." I looked up to see him furrowing his brow. "What? Don't tell me you don't eat ice cream."

He shook his head. "No, of course I do. It's just that… We have a French test tomorrow. And you have physical therapy tonight."

We stopped just outside the doors of the school, letting the high schoolers flow around us like we were a pile of boulders in a rushing river. "We'll be back before four. And that French test? We both know you'll ace it," I replied, raising an eyebrow. "I'll let my mom know if you're that paranoid." As I typed out a text, he touched my wrist, sending a tingle through my arm.

"Prove it to me." Alex's eyes sparkled with something I couldn't put my finger on, but that might've been because my skin was burning in the spot he'd touched.

I showed him the text, which read: _Hey mom, Alex and I will be back by 3:30._ He glanced up at me with a skeptical look. "You didn't even mention where we're going—"

"Oh, chill out, Alex," I huffed, starting in the direction of the playground. "Come on. I know ice cream will help you with that."

"Ha-ha, very funny."

When the playground came into view, I turned to Alex, casually saying, "You know, I really think Riley thought you were his Power Ranger come to life." I recalled that particular day, smiling at the memory of the little boy begging Alex to teach him how to fight and Alex saying "Only if your mother says you can," which, of course, she didn't.

Alex was looking at the ground as he said, "Yeah… That's not the first time someone has thought that." Something in his tone made me look back up at him.

"What do you mean? Alex, what you did was amazing. Riley will be forever thankful—"

"Everyone seems to think I'm Superman," Alex continued as if I hadn't spoken. "Everyone wants me to save them." He barked a laugh, making me jump. "I'm forced to deal with switching between Clark Kent and the costumed superhero when Simon says. 'Simon says to drop what you're doing right now, Alex, and go deal with the possible mass murder of children.' 'Oh, you can go home now, Alex, but wait—Simon didn't say we were done with you yet. We've got some eco-terrorists we'd like you to face as well.'" He then stopped in his tracks, still not looking at me. "Did Superman even have a choice?"

I wasn't sure if he was being rhetorical or actually asking me, so I stuttered, "Um, I—I don't—"

"I guess it wouldn't matter either way." Alex shook his head then glanced around briefly before waving a hand towards a nearby bench. I followed him, feeling slightly numb and confused.

"Alex… I don't understand." I stared at him, waiting for him to explain.

Instead, he lifted his eyes to mine and I was taken aback. Ever since we'd first met, they had always appeared to be guarded, locked with a key even he didn't want to use. He'd let the door open a crack the day at the beach and now… it was almost completely ajar, letting raw anguish and hurt seep through. "What about you, Addie?" he asked, his voice just above a whisper. "You made the choice to do this. You _insisted _that you wanted to risk your life." Alex's gaze seemed to burn into me and I looked down at my hands.

For a long time I'd always told myself that I would never let anyone too far in. For two years, even Arianna and Kylie didn't know the truth about what happened to Joshua. It had been a secret that my parents and I suffocated in and locked away, doing nothing more than ask why. And Alex seemed like the first step to overcoming something that had torn me apart. "It was two years ago," I began, biting my lip. "My brother, Josh… He was twenty-one then and undercover on his first major assignment involving drug cartels in Mexico. My parents and I were really proud of him and scared at the same time because, you know, there's always that chance of no return. But he was—_had _been—a really dedicated agent." I smiled a little. "He taught me some of the stuff I know. We were always competitive in everything we did.

Anyway, we were hoping he'd come back, like any other family would. My seventeenth birthday was just two weeks after he'd left for Mexico and we didn't know how long he'd be." My throat tightened and I swallowed, trying to speak through it. "Two days before my birthday, he called to let me know that he'd be home the next day and that he… he had something special for me." I bit my lip harder, looking up at the sky in hopes of preventing the tears welling in my eyes.

"Addie." Alex was staring at me intensely. "You don't have to tell me this."

Shaking my head and quickly wiping away runaway tears, I insisted, "No, I do. I… I want to." When he didn't protest again, I continued, "That next day when he was supposed to have come home, someone came to our door. We thought it was Josh and no one else—why would we?—but it was David Reyes. I didn't know him well at the time, but he'd worked with my brother a lot. According to him, a bunch of dealers and smugglers found out about Josh's cover. We still don't know how; he was always such a careful person. But they went after him when they realized who he really was and…" David's voice echoed through my head and I clenched my fists. "When Josh didn't show up to his dead drop with Greg Olsen, his case officer, the CIA sent people to his hotel room." I looked at Alex but barely saw him through the memories flashing through my mind. "They could hardly recognize that it was him," I nearly whispered.

Alex opened his mouth but I twisted off the silver ring I always wore on my left index finger. It was carefully engraved with the tiny, intimate words that meant more than the world to me. Handing it to him, I explained in a shaky voice, "It says 'May God be with us together and apart.' He had it made when he first arrived and picked it up the day I spoke to him on the phone." My vision blurred and I felt my cheeks tingle with more tears. "He… David said it—it was in my brother's pocket. My birthday present. It was the only thing those bastards didn't take after they… w—when they…"

My walls finally fell. After years of mourning in solitude and refusing to accept the truth, I now came to understand that none of it had worked. No matter how hard I'd tried to wrap the covers of denial around myself, there had always been that inevitable cold of loss and sorrow seeping through. And here I was, crying in front of someone else, unable to reel in my pent-up emotions that were gushing out.

Strong arms wrapped around me, making me stop momentarily to see Alex's cotton blue tee under my nose. In spite of the seventy degree weather, his body was comfortably warm. I leaned into him, trying to mold myself into the soft yet firm gesture. And his smell… that fresh, clean smell was so overwhelming and homey, five times more appealing than Axe or Old Spice deodorant. I immediately felt my cries dying away as his fingers stroked my back, calming me, soothing me.

Once the tears stopped running and my sobs faded into sniffles, I pulled back tentatively, overcome with shyness. This was the most intimate we had ever been and though it felt wrong, it was also tempting. I realized that as my skin danced and prickled with longing. Alex's face was just within inches of mine and his eyes were full of gentle concern but underneath them something else raged. For a moment I was lost in these confusing sensations while he brushed away the remaining tears on my cheeks, watching that unknown fire of emotion flicker behind the cloth…

The jolting awareness of what was happening sent me into a panic. Even though a voice in my head was willing me not to, I searched for a way out. Still seeing his eyes watching me, I said the first thing that came to my mind: "Your shirt."

Alex jerked back, clearly confused. "What?"

I looked everywhere except in his eyes. "Your shirt… I think the entire city's waterworks exploded on you." Hastily I wiped the excess tears off my face, glad that I'd worn waterproof mascara. Ugh, I must've looked like a mess.

"Oh." He blinked and glanced at his sleeve. "Don't worry about it. You're lucky it isn't my favorite shirt," he joked. When I attempted a smile and failed, he returned to that benign, sensitive part of him I suddenly felt vulnerable to. "Addie… I'm so sorry."

Staring across the street at the playground, I watched several kids running around, chasing each other, and climbing all over the equipment. "I'm glad I finally told someone." Forcing myself to look at Alex, I continued, "You ask me why I choose to be a part of the CIA, to put my life in danger. You could say that I get a thrill out of busting bad guys and you wouldn't be wrong. But I also do it for Josh. He died doing his job and trying to get back home to us. He'd always been my best friend, my teacher, my protector… I want to make him proud." My voice cracked on the last word.

"You've done more than made him proud, Addie," he said softly. "You've grown up to be a wonderful, strong young woman. You will always be his little sister."

I searched Alex's eyes, wondering how such flattering words could be said. He could've just been being kind; you couldn't really say that about someone you met just over a week ago… could you? "We should go," I said abruptly, standing up. "I don't know about you but now I'm in the mood for hot cocoa and a blanket."

I would have added the fact that we had a French test to study for but from the glint in Alex's eyes, he wouldn't have believed me.

* * *

-Alex-

When I'd first arrived here in Virginia, I had come expecting the worst: a worthless mission, an abnormal, frightening family, and an utter waste of my time. I'd even anticipated a good old cloak-and-dagger plot to get me killed after my last failed assassination. Perhaps MI6 had finally decided to get rid of me.

But like any other experience of mine, the reality of this mission went beyond my expectations. Addie and I had become friends and I felt comfortable here… _comfortable _but not at home. And if I had to be entirely honest, I found it a relief to meet someone who had experienced almost the same things I had.

This wasn't a vacation though, I knew that. That much I knew from Addie's broken window sensors (which were repaired when we got home from Virginia Beach) and the information David had provided me on "John." At the CIA headquarters, the Sidekick picture I'd sent was run and John's face was found in the criminal database, uncovering him as Samuel Webb, a thirty-one year old who has only been in the criminal lifestyle for three years. He'd been employed by one of Castillo's men to gather Intel on Addie and her family, all the while figuring out how to get rid of me.

"An amateur, just like you said," Ben had said when he and David had stopped by to deliver the news. "Still got those killer instincts, Rider."

Except my supposed instincts seemed to only work in certain circumstances. Minutes ago, Addie had come clean about her brother, something she had never done before, not even to her best friends. Maybe she'd thought I would relate better, I didn't know. But something had pushed me to move closer and comfort her, to make a gesture I reserved for people extremely close to me. And now I felt like someone had ripped out a thread from the stitches holding in the memories and emotions I stored away… a feeling that felt free yet dangerous.

During the walk back to her house, Addie finally spoke up. "Have you spoken to Jack?"

My heart jumped in my throat and I stopped walking, a million questions running through my mind. "Jack?" How did she know about her?

Addie, having realized that I was no longer next to her, gazed at me cautiously. "Yeah…" she said slowly. "Jack. Your roommate."

All the panic that had been welling up inside dissipated and I let out the breath I'd been holding. Shoving the flashing images down, I shrugged and continued walking again. "I've talked to him once." It was true, but we hadn't said much since our conversation was cut short by Jack's parents visiting the flat.

"It must be nice."

"What?"

"Your friends knowing who you are, what you do," she explained, her tone filled with a certain yearning. "Not leaving you or hating you for it."

I raised a brow at her though she wasn't looking at me. "Is that what you're afraid _your _friends will do?" I couldn't say that I didn't understand where she was coming from; something told me that Arianna wouldn't react the way Tom had when I'd told him everything. She didn't seem the type to accept harsh truths with mere compliance or blatantly tell someone "Alex is a spy."

"I've known Arianna and Kylie for six years, Alex, and Derek for four. I've told them everything… everything that's never had to do with me working for the CIA. Do you know what I had to tell them about Joshua? Even when they knew he was an agent? I told them it was a boating accident."

I was about to offer a suggestion when the familiar sound of screeching tires made me whirl around. Two thoughts crashed against one another in my conscience, making me unable to make a decision. For one thing, the car careening around the corner was a Chevrolet like David's but at the speed it was going, the driver could have been someone else. Before I could throw Addie over my shoulder and run, the vehicle went from sixty to zero in a few yards, the shrieking of the tires piercing my ears, and the window rolled down.

Margot was staring icily at us and by the way Addie stiffened next to me, I knew there was something wrong. "Get in."

* * *

**Note: **Another random "challenge" question! Just one (;

What do you think is the big problem that's happened?


	8. Dulce Bellum Inexpertis

**Note: **Thank you all for your fabulous reviews, they made me smile! :) I'm glad the last update turned out well for you guys. Now, I know I've said this before, but this particular chapter was hard for me to write. I kept editing and editing and editing and still it doesn't feel perfect. Nevertheless, it's good enough to publish :D

Chapter Eight – Dulce Bellum Inexpertis (War Is Sweet to Those Who Have Never Fought)

-Alex-

If there was another thing I had learned about Addie upon arriving here, it was where she got her stubbornness and temper. Never had I experienced the modern fear of my full name crossing a parent's lips or having limited privileges, but it was hard to imagine that now. When Margot was furious, it was nothing the teen books and movies described.

The family room was dead with silence. Addie and I sat on the loveseat while Margot, Joseph, Ben, and David stood before us wearing various expressions of disappointment and anger. There were two more people, a man and a woman. The man couldn't have been any more than a few years older than Addie and me and he struck me as cocky with the amused look on his face. The woman, on the other hand, appeared to be middle-aged with a short black bob and harsh features. They must have been Brian James and Julia Stark, the rest of the unit.

I remembered the day Margot had been in an argument with David. She'd been yelling and I was sure something had been thrown before Addie had arrived. Now, with her kind face disturbed with stress, she was eerily quiet. After getting in the car, Addie had asked what was wrong but she hadn't received an answer.

"Well?"

I glanced up. David's dark hair was untidy and his arms were crossed. I didn't know what he was talking about and by the silence and discomfort emanating from Addie next to me, she didn't either.

"Do either of you have any idea what you've done wrong?" David went on. He looked back and forth between us. "Or need I remind you that you're still recovering from multiple injuries and a broken leg?"

"My leg?" Addie asked. Her eyebrows knitted together. "Is that what this is about? Are you worried that—"

"Worried?" Margot started towards her daughter. "Addie, you had us going _insane _not answering your phone. You can't send me a text like that and expect me to just let you two go dawdling off! You're still on crutches—what if something happened to you?"

I closed my eyes and let out a mental sigh. Of course that was what this was about. Neither of us had taken our phones off silent after that physics test and I hadn't made sure Addie properly notified her mother. Hell, I shouldn't have let her leave at all.

"Dawdling? Mom, we were just going to get some ice cream! Besides, if something had happened, Alex would let you know."

Margot glared. "Really? The closest place to get ice cream is McDonald's and you were walking in the _opposite direction. _How do you expect me to believe that?"

"What if something happened to _both _of you?" Joseph intervened. His jaw was set and his eyes were hard with displeasure.

"You guys are overreacting!" Addie protested. "I'm fully capable of walking a little more distance than you think…" Then she gave up, obviously too frustrated to speak anymore.

I wanted to say something but I was at loss for words. I didn't want to take Addie's side and upset her parents, but I didn't want to do it the other way around either. In fact, I was starting to realize that what I'd originally thought would be just a nice walk with ice cream had turned into something completely different.

"We'll talk about this later, Addie. Now go upstairs," Margot ordered, pointing up the staircase.

Addie looked offended. "What? Mom, I'm not nine years old—"

"I don't care how old you are, Agent Daniels. _Go upstairs._" For some reason, the formal address sounded more frightening than her full name. It did the trick though because she threw a poisonous glare at each of the adults and headed towards the stairs. Eventually a slam shook the house.

It was silent again while Margot sat down heavily onto an armchair, burying her face in her hands. Ben took over this time, stepping nearer. "And what about you, Alex? What happened to keeping her safe?"

"Nothing happened," I answered calmly. "I was by her side the whole time and nothing so much as a fly attacked her."

"That's not the point," he snapped while James made what sounded like a disbelieving snort. "The point is that you didn't even bother to check your cell phone while you were taking a fanciful walk on a beautiful afternoon. The point is that you aren't supposed to go anywhere without getting approval from Addie's parents and ourselves."

I shook my head. "What about the swim meet? We were allowed to go to that."

"Yes," said Margot, "but that was before someone had broken into Addie's room."

Okay. I'd gotten something wrong. They were right. But one of the things I hated most about mistakes was how people dwelled on them, especially when they were my own screw-ups. I could get lost in my feelings of guilt thinking about Jack Starbright and my parents and my uncle, but when others went too far into the guilt trip, it bothered me. I didn't need anyone reminding me of what I should've or shouldn't have done.

"At least Addie sent you a text at all," I retorted, trying to keep the annoyance out of my tone.

"But she didn't say where you two were going," Ben pointed out. He was more than disappointed; I could see that on his face. "You didn't think to let us know even when Addie didn't."

"It never crossed my mind."

"It never crossed your mind," he repeated with disgust.

David began pacing back and forth in front of me. "I had to call in Brian and Julia when Margot told me you weren't answering your phones," he said, gesturing to the man and woman behind him. Oh. So they were the rest of Addie's unit. "You know what the first thing all of us thought? We thought Castillo had gotten to you. For all we knew, he could've sent that text himself just to throw us off. But no." He shook his head. "This isn't a joke to us. We're taking every precaution we can to make sure Addie is safe. And you were the first one."

"Don't let us think we made a mistake bringing you here, Alex." I looked at Ben. He thought I was letting him down… Most importantly, he thought I was letting Addie down.

My hands clenched into fists. I'd decided to let them say whatever they needed to if it meant finally leaving the subject alone. I didn't feel like fighting back but I didn't feel like being patronized either. "If you're so worried about her, why don't you pull her out of school? Why don't you put her on house arrest?"

"Because she'd know what's going on," Stark said. Her voice was low and almost expressionless. It was the first time she'd spoken. "Addie's a very smart but stubborn girl. You could say that what she doesn't know won't hurt her."

I'd had enough. "And how is that working out for you?" I was careful to direct my words at David and Addie's parents. A gasp escaped Margot's lips as I pushed through them and went up the stairs.

The last thing I heard before coming to my room was David calling for me and Ben telling him to let me go.

I flopped onto the bed facedown. What was wrong with me? Acting like a child… I'd never meant to upset anyone. I might have resolved that I'd protect Addie… but at what cost? I couldn't make every decision for her if that was what her parents and David wanted. That was the last thing someone like her would let anyone do.

One quick glance at my phone sent guilt washing through me. There were twenty-three missed calls and fifteen text messages, all from Margot, Joseph, David, and Ben. There were voicemails too, but from the look of the angry and frantic texts, they were probably worse. With a sigh, I stood up, mentally formulating an apology.

"Alex?"

Addie was at the door that I hadn't bothered to close, leaning on the frame. Her eyes were full of frustration and exhaustion, sparkling with faint tears. "Were you on your way out?" I shook my head and gestured for her to take a seat in the chair at the desk. After closing the door behind her, she sat down, twisting the ring on her finger and biting her lip. Then she raised her eyes to mine.

"I can't believe it. My parents have never been like this, not even when I was twelve and I ran away because they wouldn't let me go to Las Vegas for a karate tournament."

"You ran away?"

She shrugged. "I was only gone for a day." Then she tilted her head, staring at me. Before I could ask if there was something on my face, she asked, "Did they yell at you? Blame you for letting me walk so far?"

"Sort of." I could see that she was probably going to want every detail and I didn't feel like lying, so I changed the subject. "You get that cast off really soon, though."

"True," was all she said, nothing more. "You ought to come to a kickboxing session with me and Arianna. It's a real stress reliever. I could use it right now. Besides, I'd like to see what you can do."

I couldn't help but chuckle a bit. "I don't know. After what just happened, I don't think we'll be going anywhere anytime soon." I watched her deflate at that, the smile fading from her face. "They just want you to be safe. If you want that leg to heal correctly, you have to let it be. Don't strain yourself."

Addie raised a brow and replied, "Either you've been paying attention during my therapy sessions or you've broken something yourself."

_I've been more than broken._

"Well, that and common sense. What makes you think I've broken something? Have I got a limb bent at the wrong angle?" I said innocently and looked down at myself, stretching my arms and legs out.

She didn't laugh. Her eyes were still scrutinizing me. "You've accomplished so much," she said in a small voice. It sounded like she was talking to herself. "And yet you're here… alive." Looking back down at her ring, Addie sighed heavily. "If only I'd done things as big as you have… maybe my parents wouldn't be so fearful and paranoid."

"I don't think that would change their concern for you, Addie." Was she really saying what I thought she was saying? "And saving the world? It's certainly not as fun and exciting as the James Bond films."

"But aren't you glad? Aren't you ever relieved to have found a way to stop all those criminals and murderous plans?"

Now that she had mentioned it, I hadn't even been thinking about that. I could only think of the times I'd basically been given no choice between my life and MI6. I was thinking of all the horrors and deaths no ordinary person had ever seen in the span of a few years. But then, that was it, wasn't it? I _wasn't _ordinary. And I could never bring myself to truly believe it. "Well yes. There's that too," I answered absent-mindedly.

Addie made a sound and I glanced up. I was startled to find that her face was one of utter astonishment. "Are you telling me you don't care that you save lives?"

"What? No, that's not what I mean."

"Then what is it? 'Cause I can see that there's something that bothers you about all these dangerous missions that you do."

Addie didn't know. She didn't know anything about my past with MI6 and that was obvious from the disbelief and irritation radiating from her. She didn't understand. "You don't understand," I began. I stopped for a moment, hearing my own impatience. "MI6 used me. They almost never gave me a chance at a normal life. I was only fourteen when they first sent me on a mission! I've seen things worse than your childhood nightmares…" And so I told her everything I could… almost. I did my best to recount most of the memories of the sick-minded people and their mad plans to destroy half the world. It all came rushing out; I realized that I'd been eager to tell someone else about the things I locked away. Her face remained stoic though and I didn't understand why. "Honestly, this is why I can't stand MI6. This is why I'm not the same Alex Rider I was four years ago." I waited for her response.

"How are you not grateful for succeeding these missions, let alone having the chance to do them? I've been waiting for something as big as what you've done," Addie said, waving a hand towards me.

"It's not as wonderful as you think it is," I argued. "Haven't you listened to a word I've said?" Without hesitation, I yanked up the front of my shirt and pointed at my heart where the gunshot wound gleamed against my skin. "This is what happens when you're a spy and people want you dead."

Addie stared at me. "I know. My brother was a spy."

I lowered my shirt. I hadn't meant to be insensitive. "What I mean is… if MI6 hadn't manipulated me, if they'd—oh, I don't know—given me some time to be a teenager, maybe things would be different. As a fourteen-year-old schoolboy, I wasn't looking forward to every disaster I encountered. I wasn't even trying to brag to my friends that I was a spy."

Her eyes narrowed. "Excuse me? I thought I told you _exactly_ why I risk my life. It has less to do with my reputation than it does with helping the world and making my brother proud. I don't sulk around whining about wanting to be an ordinary kid. I don't know about you, but I would rather be extraordinary for what I do."

I felt anger bubbling up in my chest and there was nothing to stop it. How had things turned so quickly? I could barely answer my own question with the frustration biting at me. We were misunderstanding each other and it felt like there was no way to settle it. "Well I'm glad to hear that the CIA has been good to you." We both had been driven by different things to go on missions and save the day. Unlike Addie, I'd been driven by blackmail and manipulation.

"Is there no one to be proud of you for what you do? Aren't your friends? Your family?"

Hurt seared through me. "My friends care for me but as for being proud of what I _do_? I don't _do _anything for MI6 anymore." _At least I hadn't until _you _came along._

"Really? Why are you here then?" Addie glared at me. "I thought you were supposed to be taking down an international criminal. Or is there something I should know?"

"What you should know is that I was brought here against my will," I said through gritted teeth. "I'm here because MI6 told me I had to be. _That's _why I wanted nothing to do with them."

"Why?" Addie glared at me. "Is it because you're tired of them 'ruining your life'?"

"My life was ruined the moment I was told my uncle died in a car crash!" I nearly shouted, jumping to my feet. I barely noticed her eyes widen as I continued, "My life was already ruined when I found out he worked as a spy for MI6, when I found out that he'd been _shot_ and the crash was a ruse. My life has been ruined since then and I've tried to put my past behind me."

I breathed heavily as Addie stared at me. My heart was pounding and I had the urge to throw something. "The last thing I've wanted was another mission, another thing to remember every time I look in the mirror. This is exactly what that is. And I regret it… I regret all of it."

Pain flashed across her face but it did nothing to calm my frayed nerves. Her voice trembled the slightest bit as she said, "You know what sucks the most about thinking you've met someone you might relate to? The one thing that you may have in common turns out to be the one thing that sets you apart. Because we're _nothing_ alike."

I could feel the vibrations through the floor as she banged the door behind her. It was odd—as mature as she sometimes appeared to be, she had a childish knack for door-slamming. Shaking the offhand observation from my head, I went to my bed and lay down. I stared at the ceiling and I couldn't help but hear Addie's voice.

_Because we're _nothing _alike._

Over and over again.

_Because we're _nothing _alike._

_Nothing._

Nothing.

* * *

We didn't speak the next day. Our exchanges were usually "Pass the corn, please" or "David is picking us up today." In other words, we didn't say a thing unless it was absolutely necessary. Addie's parents didn't seem to have caught on because Addie was ignoring them as well.

It seemed like everyone was giving everyone the cold shoulder. It didn't matter who picked us up from school—whether it was Margot, Joseph, or David, the car was always silent. The few times they ever spoke to me sounded normal although I knew nothing was settled between any of us. Even people at school had noticed. I remembered Arianna and Kylie pulling Addie into a corner (none too discreetly) to have what I thought had to be "girl talk." I didn't know if she'd told them the truth or a variation of it but either way, no one was giving me the evil eye. Yet.

The way Addie acted towards me was downright cold. She never looked me straight in the eye and whenever she spoke to me, her gaze was somewhere else. Her voice might have sounded normal to a stranger but it was like she was talking to someone other than me. Part of me wanted to apologize but another said no; if we were going to speak again, the effort would have to be mutual and not one-sided. I wasn't the only one at fault.

That night, when we were having dinner, there was a phone call. The four of us had been silently eating casserole dishes of _moussaka_ (Margot had decided it was Greek Thursday) when the house phone rang. Margot went to answer it and I watched as her face paled slightly. Her eyes darted toward me and when she met my gaze, she turned away, speaking quickly into the receiver before hanging up.

I'd been the only one who'd noticed; Joseph and Addie were busy eating. Margot sat down and seemed to pick at her casserole before she decided to speak. "Alex, David and Ben will be here in a few minutes. They'd like to take you to headquarters." Addie had been in the process of cutting her food but stopped at her mother's words.

"What for?" I asked.

"You'd have to ask them." Margot didn't look at me and turned to Addie. "Did you want anymore?"

She shoved the last bite into her mouth before standing. "No. I've lost my appetite."

They arrived just as we'd finished dinner and I left the house without saying goodbye. The sun was just beginning to set behind the houses across the street while the bluish gray sky bled into a reddish orange as it touched the horizon. I got inside the Chevrolet, greeted by a stony silence colder than the night air. David and Ben were in the front, staring straight ahead.

"I'm leaving Addie," I said, then realized how strange it sounded coming out of my mouth.

"Her parents won't let her out of their sight," David answered from the driver's seat.

I looked out of the window as we drove away and was able to catch a glimpse of one of the windows on the second floor. Addie's lights were on and I could see her moving around behind the closed curtains. I thought about the previous night and something in me stirred, making me wonder if this mission was starting to become more than just saving someone's life to me.

* * *

**Note: **Yes, I had difficulty with Alex and Addie's fight. I didn't want one character to be completely bashing the other. I wanted them both to share faults and misunderstandings, blah blah. I needed some character development and boy did things develop haha. You probably anticipated something different when you read the cliff hanger in the last update but I do hope this made up for it!

I _promise _that there is action coming and more good stuff! Especially in the next few updates... (;


	9. Absit Omen

**Note: **SURPRISE! Wow, I never thought I'd update twice in one week... I feel quite accomplished(: I guess I was just getting so excited about what I have planned for this story that I couldn't help but double my daily hours I usually spend on a chapter. And here it is! You guys have also been amazing readers, another reason why I wanted to put up another chapter so soon. There are several things I'd like to go over though:

1) Reality check! I was stupid enough to disregard what the year would be if Alex were 18 years old.. 2005. The first iPhone wasn't released til 2007. So I had no choice but to go back and rewrite a few details- Alex now has a Sidekick instead of an iPhone. I know, I'm a perfectionist.

2) I had to do plenty of research for this particular chapter and I know I will have to do plenty more for future updates. I'm trying to keep it as realistic and unrealistic as possible, if that makes sense. I mean, as accurate as the AR series was, it was a great deal unrealistic, right? but that was the beauty of it! I loved reading the books because of that. Anyway, if you see anything that seems off, _please _let me know!

Sorry this chapter feels a bit long!

Chapter Nine – Absit Omen (Let This Not Be a Bad Omen)

-Alex-

I didn't know what was going to happen once we arrived at the CIA headquarters. Despite my uneasiness, I had to admit that I was curious; is it concealed within a building posing as a bank like MI6? I remembered clearly the times I'd been taken to various CIA branches. They had been disguised as well, one of them as a cartoon shop in Manhattan, New York.

When we arrived there though, the headquarters appeared to be completely ordinary. I gazed around as I followed David and Ben across the parking lot. The buildings are distinctly modern, built from the colors gray and light aqua. The office towers are four floors at most, the polished glass windows giving nothing away about the goings-on inside. Tall trees dot any space of grass (which was very green and healthy-looking) surrounding the compound and I wouldn't have been surprised if the purpose was both protection and presentation.

"Here. You'll need this." David handed me what looked to be an ID card attached to a lanyard. On it was a large orange _V_ and underneath was the words "Visitor Escort Required." I noticed that Ben was wearing one as well. "I'm the escort for both of you," David explained. "You're only allowed in certain areas but as long as you're with me, no one will bother you. So _don't _leave my side."

"Why? What happens if I do?" I asked, more for the sake of it than out of actual curiosity.

Ben chuckled. It was the first sound I'd heard from him tonight. "Wouldn't you like to know?"

The first thing we encountered after entering through one of many sets of glass double doors was security check. A number of uniformed guards stood by, watching as people came and went. David put his ID card into a machine, punched in a few numbers, and walked through the gate stick. He verified Ben and me and we were through.

"Welcome to the Original Headquarters Building of the CIA," David said as he led the way into the lobby. I caught my breath, all my expectations and silly imaginations forgotten.

The main lobby was clean and polished and the color scheme was gray and white. Several people were walking about, too immersed in their tasks to notice the three of us. Thick square columns created a sort of aisle leading towards the wall opposite the entrance where I could make out a bust and American flag. Featured prominently before us was the CIA seal, laid out on the floor for everyone to see.

David caught me staring at it and asked, "Do you know what it stands for? The eagle, the star, or the shield?" When I shook my head, he answered, "The eagle is our national bird; it stands for strength. The sixteen points of the compass star refer to how our global intelligence data come together right here at headquarters. And the shield… well, it's obvious. It represents defense."

He ushered us forward, pointing out the different articles decorating the large lobby. Just next to the entrance a bible quote carved into the wall made a chill run down my spine:

"_AND YE SHALL KNOW THE TRUTH AND THE TRUTH SHALL MAKE YOU FREE." – JOHN VIII-XXXII_

On the north wall, the Memorial Wall was made of shiny white marble bearing almost one-hundred stars for the CIA officers who'd died in service. There was a bas-relief of Allen Dulles, the fifth Director of Central Intelligence and the longest-serving. Why was the one lobby of the CIA much more interesting than the whole of the Royal & General Bank of MI6?

Eventually we left the lobby and entered an elevator where a middle-aged man was holding open the door. "Thanks, Holden," David said as he went to stand beside him.

Holden nodded. I noticed that the three men were dressed similarly with dress shirts and pants. Briefly I felt out of place in my Rugby shirt, jeans, and Nikes.

We rode in silence until Holden said, "Have you gotten a lead yet on that Castillo case—" His eyes landed on me and his mouth clamped shut. He'd probably thought he was discussing business in front of an unsuspecting minor.

David laughed a bit and put a hand on my shoulder. "Holden, I'd like you to meet Alex Rider." Holden's eyes widened.

I extended a hand to shake his and nodded. "Nice to meet you, sir."

He smiled. "Dennis Holden. It's a pleasure to meet you, Alex Rider. I've heard a lot about you."

"I can't say I'm surprised," I muttered. Ben glanced at me but didn't say anything.

We all got out on the same floor. Holden and David had their heads bent together as Ben and I followed them down a white corridor. Several doors were set at intervals with different names and titles. I didn't bother to read all of them but instead stole a glance at Ben. He looked exhausted; there were dark circles under his eyes.

"Ben." He looked at me. "Listen, about yesterday…"

Before I could continue, David called back to us. "We're here." As we approached him, he trained his gaze on me. "Alex, I'm going to trust that you won't do anything stupid while you're here."

"That may depend on your definition of stupid," I said but no one heard me as we went through a thick, heavy door… and stared.

We had entered a massive central room of some sort. Everywhere I looked it was busy, busy, and even busier. CIA agents and officers were bustling about at the dozens of desks with computers—they were doing things like discussing files or making calls. They were dressed in formal work clothes and I spotted several guns. Some people kept them within their jackets. Others had them promptly featured at their waist or beside them on their desk. My ears were filled with chatter and telephones ringing. I glanced up and saw a huge television screen several yards across hanging on the wall. It was displaying a range of information using charts, maps, and files, much of which looked confusing and complicated. Even at eight o' clock in the evening, these people were hard at work.

"Alex, keep up, will you?" David waved me over. He was at the foot of the stairs leading to a metal balcony opposite the giant TV. Snapping back into focus, I went after him, trying to ignore the business around me. A door on the balcony led to a small conference room complete with a long table, chairs, and a projector screen. Accompanying the chairs were small tablets, almost the size of a laptop. James and Stark were there along with Holden and two other men.

Introductions were made. The older man was Mr. Garcia, Director of the CIA. He seemed to be in his fifties with salt-and-pepper hair and was shorter than me by a few inches. According to him, he'd made it his "personal obligation" to attend my briefing (so _that's _what I was here for) and congratulate me on my accomplishments. The second man, closer to his thirties, was Anthony Payne, Deputy and second to Mr. Garcia. "Please, call me Anthony," he told me. A glint in his eye and his body posture gave him an air of cool confidence.

Once we were all seated at the table, I examined the tablet sitting before me. It took me a moment to recognize Windows XP's latest release of the Tablet PC. I played a bit with the swiveling screen, stopping when I saw that Stark was watching me disapprovingly. I resorted to the stylus pen, twirling it between my fingers.

The lights were dimmed and David switched on the projector so that files of information were fading onto the screen. A picture of a scruffy man appeared, the same as the one on all of the tablets.

"This… is Henry Mather," he began and then I was lost to the rest of the meeting. I was the only one who needed the briefing; everyone else was filled in on the situation concerning Addie. As I learned more and more about what we were up against, it dawned on me that while my duty was to protect her, I really didn't even know that much. Apparently they had dispatched a double agent just after the gas station incident to infiltrate Castillo's men. He had been there on the inside, pretending to assist Mather in getting rid of Addie. The number of men working with Mather was undetermined but one of them had been Samuel Webb, the man from the beach. A few days ago, David's unit had received Intel from the double agent.

"Johnson managed to send us a message when Mather wasn't looking," Julia explained to me. "Unfortunately, the message was intercepted by one of Mather's other men, but not before we received part of it. He warned us that Mather keeps changing his plans on how to capture Addie… but we never got the information about what some of those were. Since that message was intercepted, we haven't heard from Johnson."

Briefly my mind flashed towards the conversation Addie and I had yesterday. The same horrific thing had happened to her brother.

"I'm surprised they're not moving any faster," I thought aloud. "How come Castillo doesn't just hire an assassin to do the job? He's got men that are indecisive and—"

"Castillo doesn't care how it's done." It was Anthony now that spoke. Pointing to the picture of Mather, he continued, "Castillo had originally employed him as a torture expert. Knowing this and the fact that it's Mather's job to take Daniels out…"

"His indecision comes from wanting to inflict as much pain as possible," Ben finished in a soft voice. "He's a sadist, Alex."

I felt my stomach lurch. This man was looking for ways to die painfully and slowly. The thought made my head spin and an unpleasant taste fill my mouth.

"But they'll be moving fast," Brian added. For once I saw the haughtiness absent on his face, replaced by seriousness. "They've found out that a CIA agent had been spying on them; they'll be watching their backs and they even might have moved their due date."

"Due date?" I asked.

"That's what they call the day Addie's supposed to die," Anthony explained, staring at me. I shut my eyes. Mather and his men were sick.

I turned to the tablet and used the stylus to sift through its contents. "Do you have any idea where they are? Do they have a base of some sort?"

David shook his head. "All we know is that they're somewhere very hot with little vegetation. Mather made sure his men had no idea where they are."

"And what about Webb? How come he was employed if he's such an amateur?"

Ben answered this time. "He's known to be very... desperate. I'm guessing Mather let him in on the job on a whim. I don't wanna say that he has a soft side."

"How kind of him," I mumbled. "So what now? We obviously can't move in on them if we don't have a location. We don't have details on their plan, leaving us to expect almost anything to happen." I sighed, sitting back in my chair. "We have _nothing._" I couldn't imagine how it could get any worse.

There was a knock on the door. We all turned to see a woman with pin straight black hair come in with a distraught look on her face. "Reyes, Mr. Garcia…"

Mr. Garcia stood up, urgency overtaking him. "What is it, Connors?"

"We've got something on Mather. It's urgent."

The agents hurried from their seats and David took me by my elbow. The woman, Connors, saw and hesitated. "Sir… The boy." I could tell she wanted to say more, but not with me in the room.

Everyone's eyes were on me. David seemed to think hard for a few seconds before coming to a decision. "Alright. Alex, you stay here in this room. Wait for me and _don't _go anywhere." I watched them all leave and go down the stairs and thought back to what Connors had said. _The boy._ I was eighteen years old, a legal adult in their country. When was I going to be treated my age?

Connors was explaining something at a desk when I caught up to them, gesturing towards the documents in her hands. "… came in just a few minutes ago. I guess we saw it coming but there's almost nothing more we can do. If both of them are in danger…"

"What's happened?"

They all whirled around. Ben frowned while David looked flustered. "Alex, I told you to stay up there—"

"I'm not staying anywhere when your business involves _me,_" I replied, glancing at the papers Connors was trying to shield from me. "Tell me what's going on."

Ben blew out a sigh. "Just tell him. He's part of this as much as we are." I tried to give him a grateful smile but I was sure it more closely resembled a grimace. He simply nodded.

David ran a hand through his hair before saying, "It's Mather. It seems that his plans have… well, not _changed,_ but gotten more complicated." He took the files from Connors and handed them to me. "We'd seen this coming and this is the proof." There was a photo attached to the first page and I did a double take.

There were the dark grim eyes and the unsmiling mouth. Behind them was a painful, cruel history, making the face look older. Older and beaten. He looked like he'd been through hell and back.

It was me.

As I tried to get a hold of the meaning of the documents, David continued to speak. "Mather is an extremely dangerous man, Alex, a torture expert. He'll stop at nothing to get what he wants."

"He wants Addie dead, I know."

He shook his head. "Not just her… he wants something more."

"Which is…?" I raised a brow and watched him and Ben exchange glances. My stomach churned in anticipation. Even the other agents around me looked uneasy; Mr. Garcia's eyes were softened with concern.

David looked me directly in the eye. "You, Alex. He wants you."

* * *

-Addie-

It happened Friday at lunch.

I was sitting with Kylie, Arianna, Derek, and other friends at a table inside the cafeteria. It was cloudy today and no one was in the mood to go outside. All our food was laid out before us under the scrutiny of our gazes. It was one of those times when we piled our grub together and traded. My Twix bar was safely tucked into the pocket of my sweater; no one was allowed to touch my chocolate.

"This sucks," Kylie pouted, her chin in one hand and the other rolling an orange back and forth. "All we have is healthy stuff. How come no one brought any candy? Someone always brings candy."

"I think we all know who did," Derek replied, raising a brow at me. "She just doesn't wanna share." I stuck my tongue out and he grinned.

Arianna slid a yogurt across the table. "Try this. At least it tastes good." She'd always been the healthiest eater out of all of us.

Derek's eyes widened. "Hey, you said I could have that!"

"You already have Addie's Vitamin Water, you moron! It's Kylie's turn to take something."

I stopped paying attention as Arianna and Derek bickered over the yogurt and Kylie protested that she wasn't even going to eat it anyway. Instead my eyes were trained on Alex who sat a few people away from me, laughing at someone's joke. We still hadn't really spoken since Wednesday night's fight and I had to be honest with myself: I missed him. It had been such a relief coming clean about Joshua; I'd felt like I was another step closer to something… until we'd decided to yell at each other. I didn't know how or why things had gone wrong but after thinking it all through, I felt that I really needed to apologize. I was just too embarrassed to.

Someone nudged my elbow and I realized it was Kylie. She asked me a question and I was too lost in my thoughts to tell her to repeat it, so I vaguely nodded my head. I turned back to look at Alex. I remembered when he'd come home last night from headquarters. There'd been nothing alarmingly off about him but something had to have happened… I could feel it in the way he carried himself.

Sighing, I decided I needed a good dose of chocolate to ease my mind. I reached into my pocket… and then reached into the other. Where was it? Had it fallen? I looked under the table. There were Derek's boots and my Converse, but no Twix bar. Then I realized what had happened.

Bringing my head up, I scowled. "Kylie! I told you no one could touch…"

I broke off. She had gotten up from the table to throw something away but was now frozen stiff like someone had thrown a switch. Her blue eyes glazed over and she appeared to be confused.

Then she fell to the ground and I watched in horror as she started twitching.

She was having a seizure.

* * *

**Note: **Cliffie! Hahaha, originally I didn't stop here; I kept writing but then I realized it might end up too long. Hopefully it pays off. Again, I'd love to see reviews! That's what keeps me going. Maybe I'll keep up this rapid updating...


	10. Mens Rea

**Note: **I meant to get this updated earlier what with the whole rapid updating thing, but I went fishing last weekend and got caught up in writing a new AR fic _And the Truth Will Set You Free_ (which you should totally check out! :D) So yes, sorry about that guys. I tried to get this chapter done ASAP and after posting, I will definitely be working on the next one right away!

I'm also relieved that you don't think my chapters are that long. I don't know why, but I've always been paranoid about keeping readers' attention. Unfortunately, this one's a bit shorter than I'd like but I know for sure that the next will be better :)

Chapter Ten – Mens Rea (Guilty Mind)

-Addie-

I sat there, rooted to my seat in complete disbelief. Kylie was like a fish out of the water, her limbs flopping and jerking around her. It was like an electric current was running through her body, making her shake uncontrollably.

Arianna screamed. The sound broke me out of the stupor I'd been drowning in and I began to panic. I didn't know what to do; despite the first aid classes I took every other year, my brain was still refusing to believe what was happening. I managed to notice that the surrounding students were equally gaping in shock, pointing and widening their eyes in fear.

Someone pulled me to my feet as two boys started taking charge. It was Derek and Alex. They were ordering people to move, pushing the tables out of the way to make room. I forced my eyes away from Kylie, seeing that it was Andrew Walsh who was holding me. Arianna was a few feet away, sobbing into someone's shoulder. The school's security had rushed in and one of them was speaking into their radio. The students in the cafeteria were being ushered out into the halls.

"Come on, Addie," Andrew was saying into my ear. "We have to go." He attempted to turn me towards the doors.

"No," I tried to say but my lungs wouldn't breathe. I couldn't take my eyes off my best friend; part of me yearned to do something, _anything _to make her stop but I knew there was nothing I could do.

Andrew bent down and blocked my view. "The nurse is here, Addie," he said carefully as if talking to a child. "She'll take care of her." On cue, the nurse appeared in the corner of my eye, the principal trailing after her.

Reluctantly I let him lead me outside. I slumped down on a bench in the hallway and said thank you to whoever handed me my crutches. Andrew put a hand on my back, telling me he'd be right back with tissues. Part of me didn't think the nurse would be able to do anything. I wanted to be there with Kylie but most of all, I wanted to know why it had happened.

Burying my face in my hands, I willed myself not to cry. A huge lump had formed in my throat and the horrid image of her kept replaying in my head. I didn't understand. Kylie wasn't epileptic. She was a tiny person who had an abnormally large appetite, but that wasn't a reason for her body to do that… was it?

As a few tears slid freely down my face, the doors of the cafeteria were opened and Alex appeared. His blond locks were messy and he was breathing heavily. Behind him, Kylie was lying in a recovery position, her head tilted to the side to allow the saliva to run out of her mouth. Her eyes were closed and her body was still. She could've been sleeping.

Alex scanned the hallway where several students still lingered, and finally his gaze landed on me. As he walked towards me, I stood up, feeling anxious. He examined my face for a moment and the look in his eyes gave him away: he was scared too. I stared at him, hoping he could read the burning question in my own eyes.

He took a deep breath and nodded. "She's all right. They've called for an ambulance and—" He was cut off as I threw my arms around his body, a sob escaping my throat. It took a moment for him to register what I'd done and react by doing the same.

No longer was I holding back the tears; instead I was holding Alex tightly, distraught and afraid. For the second time, I cried into his shoulder as he held me, swathed in a comfort I'd never had before. He was only a few inches taller than me and I felt him lean his cheek against my head. We stood there for a while as he repeatedly said she was okay. He spoke in a voice so soft I couldn't help but think it was just for me.

"Everything will be okay," he said. And I believed him.

Several hours later, Alex, my parents, and I were supposed to be heading to the doctor's office to get my cast removed. I had been excited for this particular day the moment I was told my leg had been broken… but all I could think about was Kylie. The rest of the school day had gone over my head and still I hadn't heard anything from anyone, not her family or Arianna. It was driving me insane.

"Addie, stop it," Mom said when she saw me. She and Dad had come down the stairs, ready to leave until he had to take a call in the kitchen. I was sitting on the couch, bouncing my good leg up and down while staring nervously at the wall. Alex had been watching me from the other end but I'd barely noticed.

Sighing, I quit fidgeting. "Sorry. I'm just really worried about her."

"We know that," she said in a soothing voice, coming to sit opposite me in a chair. "We are too. But you have to give her some time and let her rest. I'm sure her parents will give you a call sooner or later."

"It's the later part I'm worried about." My leg had started bouncing again.

"I'm sure she's fine, Addie," Dad reassured me as he entered the room. I noticed that he looked exceptionally untidy today like he'd just rolled out of bed. He only looked like that if he was stressed. Had something happened while he was at work? Looking at Alex, he said, "That was for you, Alex. David asked me to drop you off at headquarters after the appointment."

Alex didn't seem to be surprised. He only nodded and turned to gaze out the window. This was exactly how he'd acted since first leaving with David and Ben the other night. Though he could normally be quiet, there was certain intensity in him that I sensed. It had captivated him for days… and I always wondered why.

Mom's eyes were on me, soft yet penetrating in that they seemed to read me and see past my thin veil of pretense. "We're sorry, Addie."

Shaking my head, I insisted, "Like you said, I'm sure she'll be fine."

"No, that's not what I meant." She blew out a sigh. "I was talking about you leaving with Alex after school. Your father and I want to apologize." The sternness had disappeared from her face and I could feel her armor stripping away. "We were just so scared that afternoon. How would you react if you'd tried to get a hold of one of us and we never answered? We can't afford to lose you, Addie…" Immediately I knew what we were all thinking: while Mom and Dad couldn't lose another child, I didn't want to have anything happen to me either.

"We would rather be safe than sorry, sweetie," Dad added, giving me a sympathetic smile as he put a hand on Mom's shoulder. "And so we wanted to say sorry to both of you for… overreacting." The two of them looked at us expectantly.

"You weren't overreacting. I should've let you know where we were going," I admitted, wringing my hands. I'd always felt embarrassed when apologizing; I was never one to let go of mistakes easily. "Next time, I'll make sure to do that _and _check my phone regularly," I guaranteed, smiling sheepishly.

"It's my fault too." We turned to see Alex smile a bit though I thought it looked forced. "I didn't think to check my phone or let you know where we were."

Dad nodded. "We know you're doing your best." The three of them were looking at each other and I couldn't help but wonder what he meant by that. Was he talking about the Castillo case?

"I could've carried Addie home but she manipulated me into indulging in fatty ice cream." Alex shrugged.

My parents laughed and I mockingly ran my eyes over him. "I don't know about that. You probably would've gotten hurt."

He grinned this time but it never reached his eyes. "Let's go get this cast off," I said quickly, getting off the couch. As I grabbed my crutches, Mom and Dad came over all smiles. Mom hugged me and Dad gave me a kiss on the forehead.

"You know we don't like to fight with you, Addie," he said, ruffling my hair. "I just want my little secret agent to be safe."

I groaned as Mom laughed and headed towards the front door. "Really, Dad? Was that necessary?" He only chuckled and walked away, leaving me to pout at his back. The silly nickname didn't bother me of course; I felt glad and relieved that things had been settled. Almost.

"Can you believe that?" I tried to laugh. I turned to find Alex but the living room was empty. He was gone.

* * *

-Alex-

I'd come to the headquarters expecting one thing: the unexpected. When I'd first sat down in the chair of another conference room (it was identical to the last one I'd been in), the last thing on my mind was French verbs or calculus derivatives. The incident with Kylie had shaken me and furthermore, it had absolutely terrified Addie. I remembered when I'd felt like there was nothing I could give that was more than mere comfort except cross my fingers and hope the girl was okay.

I was right about that at least. According to David, Kylie was in a stable condition at the hospital and she would be free to go home soon. "But there's just one thing," he said as he paced in front of the projector screen.

"Isn't there always?" I murmured, twirling a pen between my fingers.

"Alex." Ben was sitting across from me and I could see the concern in his eyes. "Are you alright?" Everyone else was looking at me: David's unit, Anthony, and Holden. Mr. Garcia wasn't present, handling the situation with Kylie elsewhere.

Shrugging, I sat up and avoided looking directly at him. "I'm fine. Go on," I told David. David appeared to want to say something but he moved on, bringing up more files on the screen.

Truthfully, I was troubled. My first night here at headquarters had drastically changed things and raised the stakes. Now that Mather was interested in me, I had to watch out for myself too. I thought back to a few hours earlier when I'd watched Addie make amends with her parents. I had never realized it before, but underneath that weighty sense of obligation to protect her… I knew that I would keep her safe whether or not it was my job to. What had first felt like a whisper of something trapped in comfort had now turned into much more, a warmth and light that I was drawn to. That much had become evident at the doctor's office the moment her cast was removed.

I couldn't help but smile when she did, more because it was kind of infectious than it was a relief to see her on her way to a full recovery. Yet while she was happy that it was off, somewhere in those green irises swam anxiety and fear for Kylie… things that I felt too.

I brought myself back to reality in time—a woman who had earlier been introduced as Jensen was standing at the front of the room. She was dressed smartly in a navy pantsuit with her blonde hair in a high ponytail. David had said that she studied bromatology, food science.

"Kylie Abrams consumed the Twix bar that Daniels had in her pocket," she began. "A blood sample was taken and we found traces of numerous amounts of food chemicals and additives." She counted them off on her fingers. "Monosodium glutamate, theobromine, copper, caffeine, aspartame—which, in other words is the sweetener you put in your coffee—and the list goes on. Each of these contributes to and increases the risk of seizures. Many of these aren't even normally part of the ingredients of Twix candy."

"How is this connected to Miss Daniels, then?" Holden asked.

"Well, it's obvious, isn't it?" Jensen pulled something out of her pocket: a Twix bar. "Addie was meant to eat that bit of candy. It was supposed to give _her _a seizure, not her friend."

"Mather must have found a way to get that into her house," David thought aloud, tapping a pen against his chin. "Maybe that was what the intruder did when they broke in last weekend. Slipped it into her stash of chocolate."

I frowned. "But what would that achieve? Was it supposed to kill her?"

"And how would they know that she's the only one in her family that actually eats chocolate?" James added.

"Frankly, they know quite a lot about her." Ben rubbed his face tiredly before continuing, "I don't know that the candy was supposed to kill her but I have a feeling that Mather wouldn't do that. As a torture expert, he'd want to be there. He'd want to be the one inflicting the pain."

Suddenly it came to me. I had run the whole day's events through my head and put one and one together. "Kylie was sent to the hospital after that seizure. Perhaps that piece of candy was only the first step. He might have been planning on—"

"Kidnapping Addie from the hospital," David finished, nodding. "That makes sense."

"But it didn't happen," Stark pointed out. She ran her dark eyes over everyone as she added, "Mather's got to have a backup plan of some sort. I'm sure he isn't very happy about this one failing."

"And he has another target." It was the deputy director speaking. I shifted, knowing who he was referring to. "One who hasn't consumed a poisoned piece of chocolate."

I doodled in the corner of a document in front of me, stopping only when Ben gave me a look. "I don't eat much chocolate," I replied blandly.

"What's the point of having him around then?" James asked, jerking his chin towards me. Next to him, Stark threw him a dirty look.

"What are you saying, James?" David folded his arms, his eyebrows raised.

"If Mather wants him too, doesn't that double the risk factor?" The agent didn't seem to realize that most of everyone was glaring at him. "Every time they're together, they're increasing the chance of both of them getting killed. It's a whole new meaning to killing two birds with one stone."

Ben, who was looking increasingly annoyed, leaned forward to speak but I beat him to it. "That may be true, but you're still missing one thing." James frowned at me, probably because he didn't like looking stupid. "I'm not their primary target; Addie is. I'm just a small prize on the side if they happen to catch me too but it won't matter that much if they don't. I still have to watch out for her. She may have gotten her cast off but she won't fully recover for at least another few weeks. If I can still save her life, I will."

"Alright," David sighed decidedly, running a hand through his hair. "Alex is going to continue with what he came here to do. We just need to figure out what we're gonna do with Kylie and her family. They'll want some answers."

"You can't just tell them about what was inside those Twix bars." It was Jensen who'd spoken. I'd almost forgotten about her; she hadn't spoken since debriefing us. "You'll have a court case on your hands because they would want to sue the company."

"Then what are we supposed to tell them? They know nothing about Addie being part of the CIA."

I thought about it as they talked. It was true that none of Addie's friends knew that particular part of her. While Kylie and her family deserved to know how exactly her seizure had come about, there was no way of stopping them from trying to sue or something. What could we tell them that would keep them from doing anything drastic?

They were still debating and throwing ideas in when I lifted my head and said, "Just tell them."

They stopped and glanced at me. Ben asked, "What do you mean? Tell them what?"

"Don't lie to them, if that's what you're thinking." I shook my head.

"What are you suggesting, Alex?" Anthony probed.

"I think you should tell them the truth."


	11. Nemo Nisi Per Amicitiam Cognoscitur

**Note: **I'd like to take a moment to thank everyone for the awesome support :) Yall are the reason why I write literally and practically everyday, much to my parents' dismay hah. (And to show my thanks, there's a lil something down for you all the way below! But you must read first!) I had a lot of fun writing this one and I have to admit, I got real hyped towards the end so I didn't bother to edit it much! And just for you guys, this one's longer than usual [w/o the ANs it has over 5,000 words, almost twice as many as I usually have... sorry, I do feel like it's an accomplishment(: ] Yay!

Chapter Eleven – Nemo Nisi Per Amicitiam Cognoscitur (No One Learns Except by Friendship)

-Addie-

My leg hurt. A lot.

I was lounging on my bed, surrounded by fluffy, colorful pillows. The leg that had just come out of the cast was propped up on one of them and it felt sore. Though I wore pajama pants, I knew that underneath the cloth was a poor withered limb, atrophied from lack of use. I desperately wanted to get in the water and regain some muscle but I knew I wouldn't be able to even walk normally for days, maybe a week.

There was a literature book and some schoolwork beside me, untouched and ignored. I should've been studying for the final exams I had to take before the seniors' last day and graduation, but it was all far from my mind. In my lap was my sketchbook, worn from years of use. I had decided that I needed to draw something and get my mind off things. I'd first tried to do flowers, birds, and a few eyes, attempting to remember even how to hold some of the art materials. Ever since Joshua had died, I'd barely touched them let alone taken them out from the back of my closet.

Now I was staring at a blank page, wondering what I could draw next. I looked at the boxes of materials, skimming the colors and waiting for a jolt of inspiration. Over the years I'd collected almost every type from old school crayons to bamboo pens and oil pastels. Whatever kind of details I wanted, even if I wasn't good at it, I could have just by choosing the right material.

Absentmindedly, my hand groped for something—a pen, maybe—and put it to paper as the face faded into my mind's eye. I had never been very good at sketching from memory but I did my best, starting off with the basic oval shape and then eventually adding in details. The only other people I'd drawn were sometimes strangers like random women or kids when I sat in the cart at Wal-Mart while Mom and Dad shopped. As I got older, I used time in class to sketch the teacher or someone sitting next to me. Those had been trial drawings, pieces of paper I'd eventually throw away. But now, I wanted to get this specific one right.

In truth, I was waiting for Alex to get home. I'd been dying to speak to him alone ever since making up with my parents earlier and while he'd been at headquarters, I'd been rehearsing in my head over and over different things to say. I let him into my thoughts as I drew, thinking back to when we'd first met.

"That boy could be a supermodel," Arianna had said to me during Alex's first week. Though the comment had humored me, I couldn't deny that he was an attractive guy. But I didn't want to use the words _hot _or even _cute_… they were exact and defined physical appearance. Sitting here in the safety and privacy of my room, I knew that what drew me towards him was abstruse and unseen to the naked eye.

I used long, quick strokes, curling several strands of hair at the ends like they were supposed to be. Whenever Alex was around, I always felt the need to comfort him, to reassure him that he was more than he let himself think or be. At the same time, I had this undeniable sense of _safety_, a necessity I had more or less felt since the day David came to our door. And now I felt bare and exposed, more than any swimsuit model would feel.

The sound of voices made me stop, my pen stuck to the page. I recognized the muffled voice of my mother. I listened as soft footsteps came up the stairs and I expected Alex's door to open and close; instead, there was a light knock on my half-open door and his blond-haired head appeared. Seeing Alex, I quickly flipped over the sketchpad. "Hi. You're back." I silently hoped I didn't sound like I was guilty of something.

His eyes flickered towards the pad and then back up to my face. I noted how dark and solemn they were, wishing I could somehow transfer them to the half-finished profile I'd been drawing. I could conjure up imaginary eyes and draw them, but I'd never been able to master making replicas of a real person's. "Hey. I was just wondering if you'd managed to write down the physics homework."

"Oh. Yeah, it's right here." I dug through the papers beside me as he entered the room and walked to the foot of my bed. My heart was hammering away and for some reason I was unable to look at him directly.

"Thanks. I'll get it back to you in a minute," he said, taking the homework and turning back to the door. Part of me was urging me to say it but I didn't know how to start. Should I wait until he comes back?...

"I'm sorry, Alex," I blurted without thinking. He stopped and turned around again.

His eyebrows knitted together. "What?"

"I feel awful about the other night," I continued, trying to fight the lump that was forming in my throat. "I was insensitive and rude. We've had our differences in our jobs and missions, but that gave me no right to say what I did. I didn't realize that things had been so much harder for you… I can see now why you have your mixed feelings about MI6 and being an agent. I can't be angry at you for that. I'm sorry. I really am." It nearly took all my strength to look up at him.

I felt my cheeks grow warm as he gazed at me. Then he said, "I am too. Sorry, I mean. You're an ambitious person—there's nothing wrong with that."

"Alex…" I started but he shook his head and went on.

"You're right about saving lives, though. I guess I've sort of overlooked that and the fact that I'm still alive," Alex explained. He sat down on my bed. "To be honest, I'm jealous of you and I admire you at the same time. You want to help people and make the world a better place. Not many people are like that… You're one of a kind, you could say."

He smiled then and I had to do the same. "If it makes you feel better, you might be the toughest person I know, other than my mom of course," I laughed. Then I tilted my head. "Well, actually, that's debatable." He laughed with me and briefly, I felt good.

"I should tell you something," Alex said suddenly, watching me. I waited patiently as he took a deep breath and looked down at the physics homework. "My parents died when I was small. Very small, only two months old. My uncle Ian… I told you about him. An assassin named Yassen Gregorovich killed him just after I turned fourteen." He glanced at me. "I never told you about Jack though."

"Your roommate?"

He shook his head. "No, a different one. Her name was Jack Starbright. She was our housekeeper and one of my closest friends, like a surrogate sister. She died two years ago… killed during my last mission."

I bit my lip, wondering if there was a way I could make him feel better. "What was she like?" I asked softly.

That was when he smiled and a bud of hope blossomed in my chest. "She was great. She was always there for me… Every time I came home from an assignment there she was, sighing about the fresh bruises and threatening to do something about it…" I watched him as he spoke, seeing a light in his eyes that had been absent when he'd first arrived. He told me a lot about the woman, eventually moving on to Tom Harris and Sabina Pleasure, his current best friends. I could tell by the way he snorted about Tom and grinned about Sabina that they were the closest thing he had to family. Though the thought saddened me, it also made me glad to know that he had good people in his life.

"What happened?" I asked, keeping my voice neutral, when he mentioned that he and Sabina had once been more than friends.

"This was around the time Jack passed away and Mrs. Jones said I could live with the Pleasures. I was a wreck then; I didn't think I could handle even walking down the street without breaking down."

"Why didn't you go to San Francisco?"

He shrugged. "Despite the horrible things I'd been through, I couldn't bring myself to really leave London forever."

I nodded and sighed, fiddling with the corner of the sketchbook. "I'd love to visit the UK. I haven't been anywhere outside of the country besides Spain and that was when I was four."

Alex looked at me and said, "I'd love to have you visit."

I smiled and then realized what that meant. For the past hour we'd been talking and exchanging stories, I had completely forgotten that eventually he'd have to go back home. After getting so used to having him next door, I wasn't ready to see him leave.

"Well, I should get started on homework," he said, standing from my bed.

"You could come in here if you want," I suggested.

He glanced at the art materials around me and laughed lightly. "It's okay. You look busy and you wouldn't want me bothering you with boring physics questions." He didn't know how wrong he was.

"Okay." I tried not to show my disappointment and nodded at the paper he was holding. "Just give that to me tomorrow. I'm all finished. You could copy off it if you want."

Stopping in the doorway, Alex turned back to me with the ghost of a smile on his lips. "Thanks. Good night." He gave a little wave and left.

Sighing, I lay back on my pillows and thought hard. This had been the most at ease I'd felt with anyone in a long time… any boy, that is. That was probably why I'd even considered going back to drawing in the first place. Then I remembered the sketchpad. I turned it over and looked at the page, where the blank, eyeless face of Alex Rider stared back at me.

* * *

-Alex-

We didn't hear from Kylie and her family all weekend… at least not until Sunday night. Saturday was spent doing homework (I'd never actually done those physics problems) and hanging around the house with Addie while today I'd helped Joseph clear out the garage. We had brought out several flower pots and lawn chairs since the weather was warming up. Minutes ago, Margot had come home from the grocery store with baking materials and I was going to help Addie bake a cake. She wanted to bring a few pieces to school tomorrow for some friends and I couldn't help but tease her about the unexpected act of kindness. I'd never made that many meals before and she had her fair share of experience, more in the desserts area. We'd been sitting at the breakfast bar in the kitchen, waiting for Margot. I stared at the mint green walls with the white cupboards and the shiny modern appliances. That was when the phone call came.

It lasted eighteen seconds. Addie didn't get to say much besides asking Kylie frantically if she was okay and the next thing I knew, her face had gone pale as she stared at the wall. I got this insane urge to wave a hand before her eyes but her parents entered, having heard the phone ring. They stopped at the sight of Addie and looked at me alarmingly.

"Addie, what happened? Who was that?" Joseph asked, approaching us.

"It was Kylie." She blinked once and looked around at us. "Her family's going to Florida tonight. They'll be gone for a week." I saw the understanding in Joseph and Margot's eyes as they exchanged glances but said nothing. It looked like David had followed through and taken my advice; the CIA had told the Abrams family the truth and nothing but it, offering them a short vacation to escape and recover from their shock on the beach.

"How about that cake?" I found myself saying. "It might take all night for me to learn how to crack an egg."

Addie managed to smile a bit as her parents proceeded to give her encouraging comments before leaving. "Expect a slight mess if you ever come in," she said to them.

"They aren't helping?" I was surprised.

"I've managed on my own," she replied, standing from the bar. "Besides, Mom's a great cook and Dad… well, the only thing he can cook up is one hell of a good computer program." She laughed as she started rearranging bowls and ingredients.

I followed her. "Where does that leave me?" I asked, watching her.

Addie didn't look at me but she grinned, saying, "Let's just say that there's hope for you. Now look over those directions so you get a basic idea of what to do… Oh! I almost forgot." She strode over to the pantry and pulled out an apron. "This is for you." To my horror, it was incredibly frilly and _pink. _I almost choked at the three words written in large cursive:

___Kiss the Cook_. With hearts floating around them.

"You're mad!"

"No, I'm thoroughly enjoying myself and you haven't even put it on!" Addie laughed and started towards me.

I held my hands out, backing away. "You are _not _putting that thing on me."

She didn't stop. "What? I think pink would look good on you. Real men do wear pink."

"Well then, I don't want to be a man!" I protested, knocking my back into the counter.

"Come on, Alex, just this one time!"

"No!"

"Yes. Please?" she begged and I swear I saw her stomp her foot.

After another minute of that, I was standing in the kitchen in a t-shirt and sweatpants wearing a pink frilly apron advertising the cook as a suggestive character. It wasn't that bad, really, until Addie yelled for her parents and took pictures of me on her phone, giggling like a little girl. I had to admit that it was funny but I made a mental note to get her back.

"Just think of this cooking experience as your initiation," Addie snickered. "And wearing the apron is the hazing ritual."

What had first started out as an innocent cooking lesson with the occasional "You're doing it wrong!" soon turned into a food war. After what had felt like half a day, we'd managed to finally put the cake in the oven, Addie giving me exaggerated minute details on how to turn it on and set it to the right temperature… jokingly, of course. I knew she was being hard on me for fun.

The wait for the cake started off on the subject of homework and school. We traded stories about our friends and childhood memories and I realized how easy it was to talk to her. We were both leaning against the counter and our faces were only a mere foot away. When the timer was down to the last few minutes, Addie had me make the frosting myself. I whisked and beat while she watched and criticized. Without stopping to think, I reached over and swiped some flour off the counter, then touched a finger to Addie's face.

She jerked back and narrowed her eyes, turning ever so slowly to face me. "What was that for?" Her voice was low and menacing but she was trying not to laugh.

I shrugged nonchalantly. "I thought I'd get you back for that day at the beach… and for making me wear this ridiculous apron."

A knowing look crossed her face and she grinned. "You want help with that?" Those were the words I'd said when she'd thrown sand at me a week ago.

I started to decline when her hand whipped out of nowhere, rubbing cocoa on my face. Before I knew it we were laughing and attacking each other with leftover ingredients. Initially I was worried about making a mess and possibly knocking something over, but that was forgotten the moment Addie threw a small square stick of butter. It smacked me in the chest, luckily landing on the apron, and slid down a few centimeters before falling to the linoleum floor. We both stopped and looked at each other…

The wooden spoon in a bowl was covered in thick, creamy frosting. I sprang for it just as Addie went for more flour. I ducked to avoid the handfuls being tossed at me but some of it landed in my mouth as I laughed aloud, catching her arm with the spoon. The dark frosting contrasted with her tan skin and she licked it off, pretending to contemplate its taste. I wasn't sure for how long we kept it up but I didn't pay much attention; I was having too much fun.

"Okay," she gasped, dropping the spatula in her hand. "Time out, time out." I relaxed from my stance, walking over to where she leaned against the fridge to catch her breath. Neither of us spoke—we just grinned. I was close enough to see that there was a smattering of a few freckles across her nose and her green eyes were framed by dark lashes. They were searching my face, making my skin tingle, but I shoved down the feeling of shyness swiftly threatening to overcome me.

I wiped off a drop of frosting from the spoon and dabbed it onto her nose, making her blink. She tried to look down at it, going cross-eyed. Then she was trying to lick it off, her tongue barely reaching the chocolate. I burst out into laughter at the comic picture as Addie snorted, attempting to keep a straight face as she struggled to do the seemingly impossible human trick. "I get to take a picture of that!" I exclaimed, digging in my pocket for my phone. And it wasn't long before we were at it again, the sight of her wild, food-covered face making my sides hurt with laughter.

"What on earth…?"

Margot and Joseph stood in the doorway leading to the living room, staring at us. I was on the floor, still holding the frosting-covered spoon and Addie was reaching into the cupboard that held sprinkles and various spices. Flour, frosting, egg yolk, salt, and much more coated our exposed skin, decorating us like the cooks gone wrong that we were. Some of it was in our hair and had managed to taint our clothes. The delicious smell of the cake still in the oven wafted through the room but it did little to appease the irritated adults.

"Alex, why are you on the floor?" Margot asked, incredulity coloring her voice.

"Oh." I quickly stood up and gestured at my feet. "Butter. I slipped on a bit of it."

Both of them continued to stare at me until Joseph collected himself. "Addie. What have you done? This place is an absolute mess!" His eyes were wide; I could see the looks of frustration and disbelief in them.

"I know, Dad, and I'm sorry." Addie looked overwhelmed with guilt as she wiped her hands together, stepping forward. "I didn't mean for it to get out of hand—we just, I don't know. We'll clean it up, I promise! I'm really sorry—"

He cut her off. "You told us to expect a _slight _mess." I suddenly remembered that those were the words Addie had said earlier but I didn't want to be indecent and laugh.

"This kitchen should be spotless by the time I come back," he demanded and left. Margot was shaking her head, her fingers coming up to rub her temples.

"Margot, I'm so sorry," I tried to apologize but she held up a hand.

"Just clean it up. Please." She sighed and turned around to leave.

Addie and I stood in silence. The positive, flighty feelings that had consumed me earlier were now replaced with remorse, an emotion I only knew too well. I had to wonder, all good things always came with a price, didn't they? A punishment for being happy, for once feeling like things could change. I took a deep breath and put the wooden spoon carefully into the sink. "Well, that was fun."

I looked up at Addie and was surprised to see her smiling widely. There seemed to be no trace of the embarrassed look she'd adopted seconds ago. I returned it, knowing there was no way I could resist the warm and ticklish feelings I got from her smile. "Hey, that's all that counts, right?" she asked, shrugging. I couldn't deny that I agreed with her.

The rest of the week passed much more quickly than I had expected. It all tumbled by in a blur of schoolwork, more frequent visits to the CIA headquarters, and, remarkably, Addie. On Monday our physics test results were handed out and we had both scored a very low B—we'd celebrated by devouring more chocolate cake that night. For the first few days, rumors about Kylie circulated through the school, some so absurd and offensive I couldn't even consider them. Of course, only her closest friends knew the truth, though their attempts to correct other students did little to alleviate the teenage love of gossip. A few nights I had to spend with David and Ben, who were also anxiously anticipating another attack *(1). When I wasn't worrying about Addie's life, I was spending time with her. Hanging out in our rooms, we started asking random questions to better know each other. One of the most particular things she told me remained on my mind nearly all week.

We'd been discussing our plans in the future and where we wanted to be in a few years. "I don't know what I want to do for sure, but I do know I want to help people," she had explained during what was supposed to be a quiet study session for calculus. "I could never be a surgeon or anything like that, though I wouldn't mind becoming a nurse. I've considered being a pediatrician or even a social worker."

"So that means the CIA is out of the question?"

"Not necessarily… Whatever it is, I hope my work makes a difference." And then Addie had given me a smile.

By Friday I knew I had to stop trying to convince myself that nothing was going to happen. In fact, I should've been terrified, especially since she and I were growing closer and her life was still on the line. But perhaps that was my conscience's way of defending itself—refusing to acknowledge the inevitable… or what I hoped wasn't the inevitable. I was in my room, looking over some homework problems while I turned all of this over in my mind. So absorbed, I didn't know Addie was there until there was a click.

She was lying on my bed, dressed in a shirt and black leggings. She must have gotten out of the shower because her blonde hair hung damp down her back and I could pick up a whiff of strawberries. In her hands was something black and white and boxy. I realized that it was a Polaroid camera as it ejected film from the little slot. Picking it up, she waved it around and grinned at my startled expression. "It's a OneStep SX-70," she explained in a voice that made her sound like she was doing a commercial. "Pretty, isn't it?" I took the camera from her. It was basically an "L" shape and on its white front was a single rainbow stripe. The shutter button was distinctly round and red.

Wordlessly, I brought it up to my face and snapped a photo of her going cross-eyed. I chuckled and then said, "Now give me a real smile." She pouted for a second but then sat up, crossing her legs and tilting her head, curving her lips into the smile I'd grown fond of. Looking at the film as it developed, I said, "Perfect." She flushed and reached for the camera.

"I get to keep this one of you." She held the photo of me bent over the desk in concentration. I rolled my eyes in mock exasperation.

"Then I get _this _one of _you_," I answered, pointing to the one I'd just taken.

"You are so welcome to it. I'm not a big fan of self-portraits." She smiled sheepishly. Then an unreadable look crossed her face. "We should take a picture of all of us together. You, me, and my parents… you know, before you leave."

I gazed at her, trying to think of what to say. "Don't you want Castillo to be captured?"

"Of course," she replied in what I thought was supposed to be a convincing tone. "But I doubt it'll be in the next few weeks or even months… And at the same time, no, I don't." She didn't have to explain what she meant; I felt the same way.

She stood up, cradling the camera carefully in her hands. "I'll see you in the morning," she said, smiling.

"Good night," I told her, smiling back.

Starting towards the door, she stopped and hesitated, as if there was something more she wanted to say, but then she threw me another smile—weaker this time—and left. I was alone with my thoughts again, staring at the spot where she'd lay on my bed. The faint smell of strawberries was gone and in its place was something bland and ordinary… empty. For the past few days, I'd contemplated this moment, weighed the pros and cons, and asked myself if it was even worth it. While the seemingly rational part of me went against the longing I felt, the stubborn part would say, _What have you got to lose? _And if I _didn't _seize the opportunity… I could have everything to lose, no matter how exaggerated it looked.

In an instant I was at Addie's door, mustering up the courage I knew I needed. When she didn't answer after a few knocks, I cautiously poked my head in, and what I saw next sent adrenaline through my veins with a good dose of fear. The covers of her bed were pulled back but no one was in it. Schoolwork and books were scattered on her desk. I saw that her window seat was open about an inch and if it wasn't for the slight breeze ruffling the curtains, I may not have noticed at all. My heart pounded in my chest as I walked over and examined it, racking my brain for possibilities. The brand new security devices had been damaged again, magnets from Addie's whiteboard preventing the alarm system from going off. The view outside consisted of nothing more than black shapes in the darkness; I could hardly see even the Audi and Range Rover in the driveway below.

And in the corner of my eye was a shadow walking down the street, away from the house. By the impatient walk of the figure, it was Addie. It had to be. But what the hell was she doing past ten on a Friday night? Really, what was she doing at all? Whatever it was, I couldn't let her leave alone.

I was glad to still be in my school clothes, though I guess it didn't really matter. With one last look behind me, strangely hoping for Margot or Joseph to find me, I took a deep breath. "Damn it," I muttered under my breath as I opened the window further. The cool night air greeted me and I stepped out onto the lower roof. Luckily it wasn't too steep and my Nikes had good enough traction to keep me from slipping on the shingles. The distance from the roof to the ground was roughly eight or nine feet but I managed to hang and land lightly on the balls of my feet. I looked back up at Addie's window, still thinking the light was going to come on and reveal her parents glaring down at me, asking what I was doing.

A quick glance told me that she was already several houses down the street, almost to the corner that turned the neighborhood off at ninety degrees. Intense physical therapy every day had gotten her walking well for someone who was expected to heal completely in the same time her leg was in a cast. At her rate, I wouldn't have been surprised if she started swimming in two weeks. Shaking the speculation from my mind, I took off after her.

I kept a light jog, knowing that her trained ears would pick up the sound of my feet if I ran. I wasn't sure why I felt the need to be sneaky but I also wanted to know what was going on. What was it that brought her out of the house when she was still recovering from an injury? For a second I wondered if she was sneaking out to meet someone or go to a late night party… but that wasn't likely. I was only about twenty feet behind her as she rounded the corner, picking up her speed. Not wanting to lose her, I quickened my pace to keep up. After about ten seconds I reached the turn in the street, expecting to find her on the sidewalk—

It was empty. I stopped in my tracks, breathing heavily. Where had she gone? This was the same way we'd gone to take Riley home a few weeks ago; I could see his house. Most of the neighborhood was quiet, shut away as if they were hiding from something. I couldn't help but wonder if that was a sign.

Suddenly something grabbed my arm and reflexively I whirled around to bring my hands up. It was Addie and her eyes were wide with frustration. A few strands of hair escaped from behind her ear. "Alex!" she hissed. "What are you doing?" She looked down at my hands, which were held in a defensive position. "Stop that!"

I relaxed, staring at her. "What am _I _doing? I should be asking _you _that. It's half past ten!" I felt ridiculous whisper-shouting at her in a dark street.

"How did you find me?"

"I…" At first I thought about telling her the whole truth, right then and there, but it didn't feel right to have such a chat in the current situation. "I was going to ask you something but you weren't there. Your window was open."

She gazed at me and then closed her eyes, dropping her head. "Shit" I heard her whisper.

"Seriously, what are you doing out here?"

Taking a deep breath, she explained, "Derek texted me. He told me to meet him at the corner of this street and the next, down there." She pointed away from us in the direction I'd thought she was headed. "He said it was an emergency."

The sound of his name struck something in me but I ignored it. "He didn't say anything else?"

"Just that he was texting from a different phone, not his."

"Let me see it." She pulled out her phone and showed me the text. It did show up from a number with a different area code than Virginia's, not as _Derek_. "Whose phone could he be using?"

"I don't know, Alex," she answered, irritated. "If you'd let me, I'm going to see what he wants."

I took her elbow as she started past me. "But I'm not going to. I don't think it's a good idea."

"What if something happened to him?" Her voice cracked as desperation seeped into it. "Maybe he's alone, Alex. Maybe that's why he needs help! I'm his best friend; I can't just ignore—"

Without a second thought I grabbed her shoulders and kissed her. Her lips were frozen at first, shocked no doubt. But then I felt her melt into it, pressing closer and reaching to grip my shirt. Tiny fireworks exploded under my skin and for a minute I was lost as my mind clouded with nonsense and giddiness. Reluctantly I pulled away and looked into her eyes. They seemed even greener than ever and her cheeks were pink.

She was about to say something when there was a sound. I recognized the tone for a text and dug into my pocket, retrieving the Sidekick. After reading the brief message, I looked at Addie. "It's David. We have to get your parents and go to headquarters."

"What? Why?" she asked as I gently pulled her towards the street corner. I noticed that she sounded out of breath. "Is it Castillo?"

"Yes."

"And David wants me to come?"

"Yes." It was a lie, I knew that, but I had to keep her from leaving my side. I'd have to find a way to explain it to David once we got there, but that wasn't so important to me right now.

As we neared the corner, my ears picked up a low, rumbling sound. It was occasionally disturbed by a kind of crackling and snapping noises. Though it was faint, I knew it was near. Impulsively I walked faster, knowing Addie wouldn't have trouble keeping up. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I knew what the sound was but my brain refused to identify it. From the look on her face, I wasn't the only one who was suddenly feeling anxious. We rounded the corner and stopped abruptly in our tracks.

Just a few houses down was the Daniels's home. If there was someone here who didn't know where they lived, it would've been incredibly easy to point it out. It stood out, unmistakably swathed in a swirling cloak of orange. The rumbling and crackling noises were unusually loud from where we stood. I was vaguely aware of the small shadows surrounding it, moving shapes that escaped my understanding. And then the truth dawned on me, a shuddering awareness that pierced through the shock and fear like lightning through a cloud.

The house was on fire.

* * *

**Note: ***(1) Did anyone else notice that cool alliteration I did? Hahaha it wasn't even intentional! Just thought I'd be random and point that out :p

Reviews much appreciated- perhaps to give you incentive, I will say that I have a treat for anyone who does write one on this update (**before the next chapter**). If it's something more than "cool story bro" or "I liked it", I will most definitely PM you (have to be logged in please) a bit of a sneak peek from a future chapter. A warning though, it may be short and is _subject to change. _The general idea will remain but details, dialogue, and such might be different by the time I actually write it. I won't tell you from which chapter it will be but it _is _later in the story. You all certainly deserve it!

Thanks so much again, I hope you enjoyed this one (;


	12. Ego Profiteor

**Note: **Whoa, thanks so much for the reviews, guys! I hope you enjoyed the preview as well, I got all excited writing it because of what I'm plotting next :D If you still haven't been PMed the preview, please let me know. I don't want to forget any of you.

Disclaimer: I created Costa Amenas, but if there happens to be some place out there with that name... well, I don't own it!

Chapter Twelve – Ego Profiteor (I Confess)

-Alex-

"Oh my God."

Addie's gasp sounded far away like she was at the other end of a tunnel. My hearing went in and out, a ringing noise fighting over the crackling in the distance. I remained rooted to the ground, watching those black shapes in the distance move around the giant ember. I realized that they were people, neighbors standing and pointing at it in their pajamas and robes. There were sirens and soon enough, a squadron of fire trucks and police cars rounded the corner further down the street, stopping near the house.

Before I could stop her, Addie took off. "Addie!" I snapped out of my stupor and caught up quickly; it seemed that she couldn't do more than a light jog and the pain was evident on her face. Then again, maybe it was because of the horror that was taking place. As we neared the burning house, I was starting to feel the heat and smell the smoke, a thick suffocating blanket that I knew was much worse inside.

Inside. Her parents were inside.

She turned to me with raw fear and flames reflecting in her glistening eyes and I knew she was thinking the same thing. By the time we made it as close as the police officers would let us, her panic was bubbling to the surface. "Alex. Oh my God, they're in there! They're in there, Alex—" Soon she couldn't say anymore, the tears streaming down her cheeks as she clapped her hands over her mouth.

I reached and pulled her close to me, watching as the men scrambled around us. None of them were going inside the house yet. Looking down at Addie, I saw that the wetness was visible on her face in the fire. And then I knew what I had to do. "Wait here," I told her, touching her cheek.

I was aware of someone shouting behind me as I ran for the house but I ignored them. As I stepped through the front door, the intense warmth immediately engulfed me. It was like I'd been thrown into a giant oven. Bright orange flames and thick smoke raged around me and for a moment I didn't think there was any way I could go without getting burned or even blinded. But Margot and Joseph had to be in here… they had to be.

I remembered the view from outside. The house wasn't completely consumed in the inferno yet, though the windows had broken through as the fire spread, eager to destroy everything from the inside out. Here, I could see nothing but another chance at death. Pulling my shirt off, I pressed it against my nose and mouth and dodged what flames I could, shouting for Addie's parents. The kitchen was bursting with smoke and fire; I couldn't find a way in. Doubling back, I went across the living room where the dining room was supposed to be but there was nothing to see except another invitation for death.

I started towards the stairs, which were—to my immense relief—not yet charred. At the top, the fire was billowing out of the master bedroom, about to catch the hallway. I came to a stop at the last step, wondering if I could make it inside. Already my eyes stung and watered and I was sweating profusely. I squinted through the flames, trying to see past them. As far as I could tell, the only inhabitants were swirling black smoke and its fiery companion. I tried calling for them again, but nothing but the crackling flames answered.

Just as I was making my way down the hallway to my room and Addie's, there was an explosion that knocked me to the floor. I looked back and saw that the fire had spread and the stairs were lost in its wrath. There went my escape plan. I shouldn't have expected that it'd last anyway. Pushing myself up, I approached Addie's room but froze when I saw the flames flickering towards the open door, as if they were trying to reach me. Instead I turned for my own room, breathing a sigh of relief when I saw that the flames hadn't yet completely destroyed it. The desk was utterly lost in them at one end and I pressed against the opposite wall, heading for the window. The whole house shuddered and a loud crack reverberated somewhere. I knew I had minutes, maybe less. The fire was eating its way towards me, just feet from where I stood.

I shoved the window open and pulled myself through. Below me on the street, spectators, firemen, and police officers were pointing at me and shouting at each other. Other than the red-orange madness behind me, the only visible lights were the red and blue of the trucks and cars. I saw Addie staring with her hand over her mouth. For some reason I looked back, back into the room. That was when something red caught my eye—it appeared to be a plastic carton with a pump protruding from it and it was sitting in the corner… the corner that was soon to be overrun with flames.

I turned away just as there was a boom that rocked the whole house, the shock wave blasting through the window and sending me tumbling down the roof. Someone screamed as I fell off and landed half a second later with a crunch of metal and glass. A car alarm went off. The breath was knocked out of me, pain replacing it. As I struggled to sit up, I heard someone crying my name. I tried to call back to her to tell her I was okay but it took a minute for my lungs to work again. Two firemen approached me, shock and concern on their faces.

"I'm fine," I said, wincing as I stretched my arms out. My voice was raspy and my throat felt like sandpaper.

"What the hell were you doing in there? You could've gotten yourself killed!"

I shrugged and then grimaced at my shoulders. "It wouldn't be the first time."

I'd fallen on the Audi, right where the windshield met the hood. My body ached as they steadied me after sliding off to the ground. They continued badgering me. While they seemed to want to help, it also looked like they wanted to deck me for my stupidity.

Addie was there, being held back by two police officers. I vaguely knew that she could've taken them out if she'd wanted but finally they let go of her. She wrenched out of their grasp and flung her arms around my neck, making me cringe. "I'm all right," I told her. The firemen stood to the side, talking in not-so-low voices about me being an idiot. I wasn't surprised.

But I _was _shocked to see Ben and David approaching us, anxiety coloring their faces. "Alex! Addie! Are you all right?" Ben asked, looking us up and down.

I nodded. "I think so." I looked at Addie who just nodded. Her face was white; she was like a ghost in this darkness.

"Where's your shirt?"

I'd left it in the now-incinerated room behind me. "It got hot." Ben raised an eyebrow.

"I guess we came just in time," David said morosely, gazing at the house with a frown. "Come on; let's get you two out of here. These guys have a lot of work to do. You can explain everything in the car."

"Sir." We turned to see a young and blond EMT standing by, looking at me though he directed his words to David. "I need to take a look at him."

"I'm fine," I insisted again as Ben said, "He'll be okay. Trust me—he's been through worse." And we walked away, leaving the EMT looking pained and confused.

The SUV was parked just across the street, the emergency lights reflecting off the black paint. The four of us climbed in and Addie sat in the seat next to me. She took one of my hands in both of hers and I could feel her shivering. I put my arm around her, absently stroking her hair.

"They weren't in there, were they?" she whispered, making me wonder if she didn't want the two men to hear.

Looking outside the window, I watched the burning house pass us slowly as David drove, leaving behind everything in the unforgiving inferno. "No… no, they weren't."

* * *

-Addie-

I cried all the way to headquarters. Alex had his arm around me the whole time, keeping me warm and comforting me, and if I hadn't been so devastated and afraid, I would've been—well, to put it loosely—freaking out about it. But the only things on my mind were my parents and the fact that our house was gone, done for. Alex managed to explain to David and Ben what had happened before seeing the fire, especially about the Derek bit. They evaded my constant questions, telling me that I had to wait until we were at headquarters, and eventually I gave up, too anxious and exhausted to push them.

After we arrived, someone gave Alex a spare shirt and me a zip-up hoodie, which I was thankful for though it was a little too big for me. As we made our way through the vaguely familiar hallways (I'd only been here once because I worked mainly at a branch office), I kept Alex close to me, clutching his arm or his hand. I felt like I didn't have to be afraid of needing him near me and it seemed like he didn't mind anyway. In truth, the tiniest part of me was having a little party about the kiss we'd shared earlier, but dwelling on it made me feel guilty for using up that time to _not _worry about my parents.

The four of us entered a small conference room and it shocked me little to see that the rest of our unit was there. I didn't think I'd ever been so relieved to see Brian James. He and Julia weren't alone though: there was another agent that introduced himself as Holden and another man that I _did _recognize.

"Miss Daniels," the Deputy Director greeted me warmly, clasping my hand in a gentle handshake.

I forced a smile onto my face and nodded. "Anthony."

"Alex Rider." Despite the situation, I watched in disbelief as he shook hands with Alex.

"You two know each other?"

Anthony Payne smiled. "Why yes, I had the pleasure of meeting him last week. It's nice to see you again, _both _of you, of course."

"I'd say the same to you, Anthony," Alex replied in a cool tone, "but given the circumstances…" I pressed my lips together as the deputy gave a nod of understanding.

In the corner of my eye, I saw David and Julia talking in low voices. Not caring if I interrupted, I quickly excused myself from the director and tugged Alex with me. "David."

He looked up at me and hesitated. "Listen, Addie—"

"No, David, _you _listen." I was aware of everyone watching us now and my hand tightened on Alex's. "My house was just set on fire; I _know _it wasn't an accident because my parents aren't there, so don't feed me some 'Everything's gonna be all right' story. You need to tell me what we're going to do about it."

Silence followed for a brief moment before he took a deep breath. "_You _aren't going to do anything about it, Addie." He held up a finger when I opened my mouth. "And I have a reason for that."

"Which is?"

"Castillo. You aren't part of this—"

"David, I don't care if I'm not part of this case! These are my parents we're talking about," I snapped, ignoring his flinch. I had never liked talking back to him, especially since he was my unit leader, but sometimes my frustration got the best of me. "What do they have to do with him anyway?" As soon as the words were out of my mouth, it came to me. "He… he took them, didn't he? He took my parents." The words came out in a horrified whisper.

"Yes," David admitted unhappily. "And I had some people run your cell for that number you said Derek texted you from. It was a prepaid phone. And they also checked in on him… he's home, in no danger at all."

I bit my lip. Alex had been suspicious about the text. I shuddered at the thought of what would've happened if he hadn't been there to stop me… but wait, who had it been from?

David was frowning, obviously trying to decide something. That was when a voice said, "We have to tell her." It was Alex. I glanced at him but he was looking at David.

"Tell me what?" I asked but they weren't paying attention to me.

"Alex, you know we can't—" David began.

"But we have to," Alex interrupted him. I could feel his hand starting to tighten around mine but it was probably an unconscious move. "It'll only make things worse if we don't. You and I both know that." His tone was firm.

"Alex." It was Ben this time. He was regarding him with a careful look. "Are you sure about this?"

Anthony spoke up. "I'm sorry, Mr. Rider, but she's not authorized to know—"

"With all due respect, sir, I don't believe Addie is the type to sit back and do nothing while her parents' lives are at stake." A chill ran down my spine at his words.

Not wanting them to continue pretending I wasn't there, I said, "I don't get it. What are you guys keeping from me?"

Alex turned to me and looked down at our entwined fingers, lost in thought. He played absently with mine as he spoke. "Addie…" For some reason my pulse jumped when he said my name. I fought down the embarrassment I was beginning to feel with the dozens of eyes on me… a stupid emotion to occur at a time like this. "I didn't come here for the reason you thought I did."

I frowned. "What do you mean? Did you not come here for Castillo?"

"No," he answered, shaking his head. He still wasn't looking at me. "I did… just not for the same reason."

"You lost me, Alex."

Sighing, he brought his eyes up to mine and for the first time, I saw the tiredness and sadness swimming in them. "MI6 did approach me with an assignment. It was—it _is _to protect you." He waited for my response.

"_Protect _me? From what? High cholesterol? Is that why you didn't want to go to McDonald's that one day?"

No one laughed but I didn't expect anyone to; humor was my way of avoiding uncomfortable situations such as this, no matter how weak it was. "After your last assignment, the one at the gas station, you were named a target for Castillo. I was flown here as a… as protection. Since you would be left vulnerable at school, I was supposed to be with you at all times. The CIA couldn't have secret service agents walking around with you everywhere." He smiled but it was thin.

I absorbed this information, perfectly aware of the other agents gauging my reaction. Deep down, I knew I had this coming. A part of my mind—unconscious most likely—had known this all along and had refused to step out from the shadows and come into light. I guess I'd been so focused on things other than the consequences of the failed assignment (which was quite unlike me) that I hadn't even considered this idea.

"We had to do it, Addie," David said quietly. "If you'd known…" He broke off but I knew what he would've said. I knew who I was. I had a pretty good idea of how I would react if they'd tried to put bodyguards around me or anything of that sort.

But I'd thought everyone—my parents, my unit, even my friends—would know better than to keep something from me. Didn't they think I might just have to be given time to adjust to such a circumstance? Didn't they think of how I'd feel when I'd eventually figure it out? Yet that was it: they _didn't _think of those things because they'd assumed I'd never know… not for long anyway.

"You… You actually did it. You lied to me," I said to David. Then, looking at Alex, I pulled my fingers from his grasp and watched his face crumble the slightest bit. "You lied to me."

"I'm sorry—" Alex tried to say but he choked on his words. "Addie, I had no choice. I've wanted to tell you for a while… You know MI6, they forced me into—"

"Is that your excuse?" I stared at him, anger starting to bubble inside me.

"No. No, that's not what I meant. Honestly, I didn't think…"

"You didn't think I'd find out." Shaking my head, I stepped backwards to better see everyone in the room. "What did they tell you then?" I asked him, my harsh tone clipping my words. "Did they brief you on every little damn thing about my life? Give you a file that told you everything?" Everything… the death of Joshua would've been on that file. Looking into Alex's eyes, I already knew the answer. My stomach twisted with unease.

"So it was all a lie, then," I almost whispered as the tears started to fall. Alex's features were distorted with exasperation. "Every part of it… every minute was a lie, wasn't it?" My words sounded like they were taken off some sappy romance script but they applied all too well; I was thinking about the time we'd spent together, revealing things we never would have otherwise. Was that all a ruse as well? Had that been part of his cover? And what about that intimate moment earlier? I couldn't bear to think that the sparks I'd felt were one-sided. The very possibility sent a spasm of ache through me and I clenched my fists, trying not to double over. It was all one big fat lie.

Then I laughed a short, cruel sound that startled some of the agents. "And I fell for it too," I said bitterly. "I can see now why you're such a good spy, Alex. You played your part well." I couldn't help but inject some acidity into it, hurt accompanying it against my will. "_I_ would know." I spoke so quietly I wasn't sure if he'd heard… but he had. It was evident in his eyes.

"Addie," Ben stepped towards me, only stopping when I shot him a glare. "This isn't his fault—"

"And you know what the worst part is?" I ignored him, looking back at Alex. "I trusted you." My voice was starting to waver and my body was trembling but I didn't care. "I really trusted you, Alex, more than I should have," I said, my voice rising. A tiny voice in my brain was telling me to stop, yet that didn't matter to me—I was too anguished to. Something overcame me then, a hot blast of anger and resentment… and then I was shoving him away from me. "I actually _trusted _you!"

I felt someone grab me but I twisted my arms from their grip, keeping my glare on Alex. My cheeks were wet with tears and were also probably red. But I was done. I couldn't be there in the same room with him anymore. I turned to the door, vaguely aware of Ben and Brian shadowing me. Just as Ben opened the door, I looked back at Alex. His eyes were tightened with pain but that did nothing to dispel the anger washing through me. "And you were right there, too." I shook my head slowly. "You could've saved them," I whispered before leaving.

I was back in the room in less than five minutes. It had taken about two for me to calm down in the hallway but the process had been slowed by Brian's less-than-helpful consolation… or what could pass as one. I'd sat with my back against the wall and my head in my hands, trying to find the strength to tell him to shut up. Ben had gone inside and I knew that Brian had been left with me for a reason.

I'd been considering different ways to knock him out when the door opened and David poked his head out. Apparently they'd decided that they were going to tell me everything and let me in on the case because Alex had argued that it was "the least they could do." I could only bitterly imagine that he was feeling something like guilt.

And so I sat at the table near the projector screen, several seats away from him. I'd already been informed in several things like the man named Mather and the double agent we'd lost to him. I sat uncomfortably, bouncing my leg as they explained the broken window and Samuel Webb, some incompetent "criminal" who'd been spotted by Alex. It wasn't until the subject turned to Kylie that I stopped fidgeting and listened with a growing horror that made me sick.

"Alex came up with the idea of telling them the truth," Ben explained. "That's why they've gone to Florida. We offered them the short trip to stay safe… and to, well, adjust."

I stared at the tablet in front of me that displayed information about the operation, unsure of how to feel. So they'd gone out and told one of my best friends that I was a CIA agent, shipping her family off as if it would make things better. Fabulous. And to think that the stupid piece of candy that was meant for me had sent her to the hospital… I shut my eyes, gripping the edge of the table. Someone said my name but I ignored them, concentrating on my breathing. Everyone I loved was in danger. How would I ever live with myself if something happened to them?

Opening my eyes, I looked at David, who was watching me warily. He was probably thinking I was going to pass out. I didn't blame him. "So how do you know this Mather guy has my parents?"

Without a word, he tapped a few keys on the laptop in front of him and a document appeared on the projector screen. There was a photo of two people sitting in frail-looking chairs in what seemed like a rotten, dirty room, their hands bound by ties in their laps. Black bags concealed their faces and there were telltale marks of abuse on their skin. Even if it weren't for Dad's tracksuit pants or Mom's rolled up sweats, the letters _JAM _that were tattooed inside my dad's wrist were enough to tell me it was them. Most people thought it was a peculiar thing to get inked into his skin until they were told that it represented Joshua, Addie, and Margot.

"They didn't leave a message. We only received the photo," David said quietly.

"Because you already know what they want," I said flatly, looking away from the screen. I suddenly remembered that I wasn't the only one they wanted—Ben had mentioned Alex but my feelings of betrayal and hurt were almost too stubborn to let me feel any kind of remorse.

"We already have their coordinates," Anthony spoke up, gesturing toward his tablet. We all picked up our styluses and pulled up the necessary information. "Communications Intelligence managed to obtain them but I imagine that Mather wanted them to. If he's going to want Daniels and Rider, there has to be a location."

"Wait." It was Holden this time, leaning forward to look at Anthony. "Are you suggesting a trade-off?"

Anthony nodded. "That's what it appears to be. I mean, it seems like that's what Mather wants. Why else would he kidnap her parents?"

Before anyone else could say anymore, I said quietly, "So they're located in Mexico? Right next to the Gulf of Mexico…" I studied the highly detailed map on the tablet, an idea churning inside my mind.

"Yep. It looks like they've been hiding out in some sort of tunnel system at the edge of a small village," Ben noted. "Conveniently, it's such a small place that sometimes it's left off most maps."

"Costa Amenas," I murmured the name… Pleasant Coast. Huh. But no longer was I seeing the map in front of me. I was forming a plan, something I already knew half the people here would disagree with. "What's your plan then, David?"

David took a deep breath. "We've already called in a team of Navy SEALs for extraction. They should be ready for us in a few hours after they've been briefed on the situation. Ben and I will go with them while Brian and Julia stay with you two here. We just have to hope that we can extract your parents safely…"

I tensed myself, ready for the argument I was about to throw myself into. I'd only given it a few minutes' thought but I knew that it was what I wanted. It was something that had to be done. "No," I said, shaking my head. "The only way my parents will survive this is if you bring me along." Just as I'd expected, everyone stopped and stared at me. David looked furious.

"Addie, it's too dangerous—"

"That's out of the question!" Julia snapped, her dark eyes piercing mine.

"As if I haven't noticed that, you guys," I said quickly, "but I've been in danger from the moment I stepped into that gas station. How can this be any different?"

It was the wrong thing to say.

"_How can this be any different?!_" David repeated through gritted teeth. His face was contorted with complete disbelief and rage. "Addie, you're practically suggesting a suicide mission! I can't let you hand your life over like that!" He made a wide sweeping gesture, nearly hitting Ben in the face who sat next to him.

"Well then, fake it or something! You have to at least let me be there!"

Ben shook his head and I could tell that he was trying to keep his own temper in check. "They would never fall for it. You're going to have to trust us with this, Addie."

"We'll keep you perfectly safe here," Brian threw in and I would've laughed if it wasn't for his serious expression. Deep down, I knew he meant it.

"I have an idea."

I looked up to see Alex gazing intensely at his tablet, twirling the stylus nimbly between his fingers. For another moment he didn't speak, making me wonder if I'd imagined it. But then Holden nodded and prodded, "Go on."

Alex put down the stylus and said simply, "But it includes me… and Addie."

"Being in the field?" Ben asked.

"Yes."

"Then no," David answered, shaking his head and sitting back.

"Just listen to me," Alex insisted, leaning forward to see him. "I know it will work… because it's worked before."

Brian snorted and leaned back to throw one arm over the back of his chair, using his other hand to tap his pen against the table. Ben gazed at Alex intently with a strange look of curiosity and I had a feeling I wouldn't know what the weird connection was. Everyone else—other than David, who was glaring stubbornly in another direction—waited patiently for the explanation.

"What's your plan?" I asked a little too loudly. Alex met my eyes but I kept my face smooth. The look on his face said that he didn't think I'd believe him or agree. "Try me," I added.

Then he shrugged and leaned forward, propping his forearms onto the table.

"All right, here's what we do…"


	13. Ad Undas

**Note: **So I don't know that much about the military and all, though I'm somehow really fascinated by it (not by war but by the military itself), but I tried my best with this. I did some research and I'm sure I might've gotten something wrong but as long as it makes even a _little _sense, it doesn't matter :) Hope you enjoy this one!

Chapter Thirteen – Ad Undas (To Hell)

-Alex-

Costa Amenas was on the eastern coast of Mexico, almost exactly north and several hours from Mexico City. Its population was very much less than one hundred and from the pictures I'd looked at earlier, it seemed to be lacking in the pleasantness its name boasted. There was almost no vegetation at all, just sand-colored dust and dirt, and bland, colorless buildings. The place was so disregarded that I was sure that even its own inhabitants wouldn't have cared if it had blown up.

There were eight of us total—four were U.S. Navy SEALs, rough, serious-looking men that didn't acknowledge me with any more than a nod. Then it was me, Addie, David, and Ben. Upon meeting the SEALs, I'd gotten a funny sense of déjà vu that made me think back to my Brecon Beacons days. But introductions had been made in a hurry—I couldn't blame them for not making small talk. We were riding in two separate military vehicles: I rode with Ben and two SEALs in a jeep while David and Addie were with the others in a Humvee. Unlike us, they were enclosed in protective armor and carried with them a machine gun perched on top. About seven minutes ago, we'd stepped off the CRRC, an inflatable, rubber boat that stretches fifteen feet long and had allowed us to approach the small town from the waters of the Gulf. Now we were on our way to link up with the Mexican Special Forces that were supposed to assist us when we reached Costa Amenas. Each of us was dressed in heavy gear that consisted of the desert-colored camouflage, assault vest, helmet equipped with night vision and protective goggles, radio communications, protective kneepads, and boots. To my mild surprise, I'd been armed with a 9mm Sig Sauer handgun, combat knife, and a rifle, a Navy SEAL M4; it was specifically designed for CQB, close quarters combat. The thought of any combat within ten feet of me sent my stomach plummeting. Ben had also slipped me a smaller knife with a blade about three inches long, instructing me to keep it in my boot "just in case."

"Still remember your training from back at Brecon Beacons?" he'd asked, clapping me on the shoulder. I hadn't been sure if he was joking.

"Is it too late to go back?" I'd muttered, knowing it would be so much better than what I was about to face.

I used the time to gaze around us as we rolled along. Outside of the vision goggles that lit everything in an eerie green, there wasn't much to see; it was almost two in the morning, Central Daylight Time. The sky was the darkest blue but you couldn't call it black, at least not yet. I wouldn't have been able to see even Ben next to me if it wasn't for the goggles. The only light came from the dim headlights of both vehicles that swept across the ground like watch tower beacons and the silver moon, a bright coin hanging in the sky. It was rather chilly despite the fact that we were surrounded by stretches of desert dotted with green though rather unattractive shrubs. They trolled past us slowly and I felt like I was in one of those absurd car scenes in the films with the fake moving backgrounds.

I laughed at myself and saw Ben glance at me. "Something funny?"

"No. Just a bit hysterical I guess," I replied, and realized that it was true. While David had tried to dissuade Addie from risking her life, I was considering a possibility… one that I continued to have mixed feelings about. Even now I wasn't sure why I'd brought it up, let alone considered it… Was it because it had worked before? Did I really have enough confidence to ensure that the same successful and rather convincing results would happen? I shook the doubtful thoughts from my head. Everyone at the table hadn't thought it was a bad idea after all. It had taken a bit more thinking and planning, but it was certainly a better proposal than handing Addie over. No one wanted that and I knew that she was just as frightened by the idea too. I'd expected her to protest even a little bit but she'd appeared almost… _relieved. _I wasn't sure what to think of that.

David had managed to gather all of us when Stark escorted Addie to the restroom, minutes before we were due to leave. "Now I know that you've all had this drilled into your heads already," he'd said, "but Addie is our priority. Once Joseph and Margot Daniels are safe, no one else matters. Got that?"

The SEALs had nodded and confirmed their understanding, unlike Ben and me. "What about Alex?" Ben had asked, something close to annoyance coloring his voice.

"Don't worry about me." I had looked from him to David, who was watching me almost expectantly. "Addie is our priority. I can handle myself."

As we got closer and closer to Costa Amenas, the resolve was becoming clearer, hardening in my mind. There was no time to look back or second guess anything; we could only look forward and hope that everything worked out perfectly. I couldn't afford to lose my head on this mission… and I couldn't afford to lose Addie either.

The soldier sitting directly in front of me—Lieutenant Scott?—lifted a hand in a general direction. His low, rough voice spoke clearly into my ear: "I've got a visual." In the Humvee, I could see the other SEALs, along with David and Addie, perking up. I did the same, craning my neck to squint into the green desert.

About thirty yards or so away there was another jeep, sitting quiet and idle in the darkness. I could barely make out the shapes from where we were but as we approached them the vague outlines of the men became clear. One of them was leaning against the door casually and unhitched himself as our vehicles rolled to a gentle stop. "Lieutenant Scott?" He spoke in a normal volume though it sounded oddly loud compared to the silence we'd ridden in during the majority of the trip.

Ben nudged me and I stepped out, trying to be careful with the bulk I had on me. Scott shook hands with the Mexican and they each made brief introductions. There were two other men with Chavez, the leader, and even through the smoggy night, their gazes were piercing. The three of them were as geared up as we were. Everyone gathered around and I was aware of Addie at my shoulder. She was nearly unrecognizable in the combat gear but lack of any gun larger than the Glock was enough for me to identify her. I remembered when she'd insisted on being the only one without a rifle or sniper.

"We've got a couple dump trucks waiting for us down there," Chavez announced, jerking a thumb behind him. In the distance they looked toy-sized, but further away were the cluster of short buildings that made up Costa Amenas. "The town is very small; it'll take less than five minutes to make it to the western end where we need to be," he explained in his lightly accented voice.

"Is there anyone patrolling the area?" the SEALs spotter, Jenkins, questioned.

"We haven't seen anyone at all yet—everyone, if not Mather and his men too, should be asleep at this time."

"We should be anticipating a handful of armed men," Scott explained. "The area is also supposed to be pretty open and if there's any enemy fire, it might be difficult to find cover unless you run like hell is chasing you."

After another minute of brief reviewing, our team of eleven made its way toward the dump trucks. They were going to travel through the little town while concealing us within their metal walls. It may have been past midnight but we were taking any precautions available. The trucks were parked on the dirt road that ran through Costa Amenas and their dark green coats were faded by age and use. Once I stepped within several yards of them, the cloying smell of trash and deterioration hit me. I wrinkled my nose as Ben reached from the bed to hoist me up.

Once the back clanged shut, five of us were immediately engulfed in darkness with the moon as our only source of real light. Then the trucks roared to life and light turbulence shook us while they began to move. I could see the grim faces of the soldiers surrounding me, especially Ben who looked deeply immersed in thought. These men did these kinds of things for a living, dropping their home lives within the hours of a day to serve their country. Hostage rescue, counter-terrorism, reconnaissance—they did it all.

And suddenly I knew how they felt. Though there were our differences, it was the same all over. Just like them, I'd been called by MI6 and thrown into assignments in less than a blink of an eye. I had loved ones that anticipated my return, praying during every minute of my absence that I came home safely. These men had families and friends, people that were in danger of grief and sadness. That was how Addie's family worked too, being completely made up of CIA agents. She'd already lost her brother; did she have to lose her parents too?

The sudden silence woke me from my reverie. We'd made it safely and quickly. The back of the dump truck opened and we filed out one by one, as quiet as we could be. The trucks had stopped just outside of the town; the dark, silent buildings of Costa Amenas were on one side, a quarter of a mile away and opposite them was one lone compound, clearly abandoned. The windows of the small structures were broken through and doors hung ajar, giving into the black empty space. Underneath them was supposed to be a network of tunnels that were used for illegal activity, especially drug-related purposes. The area between the compound and the town was wide open and I knew what Scott had meant by running like hell for cover—depending on where you were, you'd have to choose between the desolate buildings and the town.

Addie came towards me with her eyes even greener in the light of the night vision goggles. The fear and tension was rolling off in waves from her and I wished I could say something, but my throat was closed up. Seeing her afraid sparked a need for me to soothe her and erase the discomfort. But instead I just gave her a nod and she did the same, turning towards the compound. The soldiers had quickly taken positions across the area. Addie and I stood together as planned with Ben and David in front of us, their bodies concealing us partially. "All boots on the ground," Scott's voice whispered in my ear. I was aware of every person around me as if they had a strange aura that pulsated under my skin. I knew two of the men were behind me, hidden somewhere past the trucks and among the town. My heart was thumping against my chest and I could feel my finger on the trigger of the M4 in my hands. Afraid that it would slip, I removed it, half-wondering if I needed it at all.

It seemed like forever standing there, waiting. I could see the red dots of the lasers from the soldiers' guns, moving slowly but anxiously amid the compound. The sound of breathing was faint in my ear but I wasn't sure if it was just mine. And then Boyd, the corpsman of the SEALs, said, "We've got movement." On cue, two people walked out from one of the doors to our right. It was Joseph; his wrists were still tied but the black bag was gone, revealing his worn, beaten face. His captor was a dark-skinned man in a flannel shirt and jeans. He gripped Joseph in one hand while the other held a gun to his head. I heard Addie gasp sharply and saw her step forward. I reached out and took her shoulder, shaking my head infinitesimally when she looked at me.

Scott murmured orders in our ears but I wasn't paying much attention. At the left side of the building, two more were exiting: Margot, who looked too exhausted to be furious, and another unknown man. But then a few more men filed out from behind them. I scanned their faces, looking for the one man responsible for all of this. He appeared last, recognizable by the grey and white hair and heavy rifle in his hands. Regardless of the scruffiness the CIA's photo had portrayed, Mather looked the cleanest, wearing a simple black shirt and cargo pants. It occurred to me that he looked nothing like a torture expert… but I was sure anyone would be able to see it there in his eyes, the eyes that relished others' pain.

"Where is she?" His gruff voice reached us easily. He and the other men had formed a clean line across the area with Margot and Joseph at the heart. Most of them had their guns held up offensively but no one made a move. I counted hastily and found no more than ten of them, creating too small of a margin for the SEALs and Mexican Special Forces… but then again, these were highly trained military. This was probably nothing for them.

"She's right here," David answered, jerking his head towards us. He didn't budge from his position. Margot and Joseph's eyes were flickering between the soldiers nervously.

Mather removed himself from the line, walking down it to see around David. My palms were sweating as he gazed at Addie but I could feel him looking at me too. He seemed to contemplate for a moment and then he signaled to his men. They automatically lowered their guns and Mather watched us expectantly. After a moment I heard Scott say "Stand down" and, hesitantly and one by one, each soldier relaxed from their positions. It was strange that Mather was doing this, not only because he had a taste for violence but it didn't feel right in a situation like this.

"Bring her," he instructed. Instantly the man holding onto Margot shoved her forward.

In response, Addie stepped around David, just as she was supposed to, and I could almost see her shaking as she walked. "Addie?" Margot must have realized what was happening. "Addie, no! What are you—"

"Shut up or she gets a bullet!" Mather shouted, making her clamp her lips shut. "Stop where you are," he ordered Addie. She obeyed. "Your gun," he continued, staring at her.

Ever so slowly, she removed the Glock from her waist, placing it on the ground while keeping her other hand up in a show of no harm. "The vest and the helmet," Mather added flatly. As she proceeded to take them off, I felt the tension from the soldiers around me. My own agitation made me grind my teeth. Were they going to ask her to strip completely down? Addie's blonde head was left unprotected, the strands of hair escaping the tight braid that ran down her neck and disappeared into her jacket.

And then Mather nodded. It was evident that Margot didn't want her daughter doing this—she was shaking her head, silent tears glistening in the moonlight as she walked. But something told me that Addie was only smiling at her, trying to reassure her that everything would be okay. Just as they reached each other halfway across the wide space, Mather raised a hand, indicating Joseph to come forward. It took me a moment to snap out of the apprehension building in my chest and start moving. There was no going back.

Everything happened in the longest instant. Scott had positioned himself directly in front of David and Ben. The second I brushed past him, I almost felt the silent order that he gave: a twitch of his fingers. I heard the quick shots, two of them, as they buried themselves into Addie's back. Even though it shouldn't have been a shock to me, I couldn't stop the absolute horror from flooding into my veins as I watched her collapse, dropping first to her knees and then falling facedown into the dirt.

The air shattered into a million fragments as both sides opened fire.

On instinct I ran, dodging past Addie's motionless figure and the hail of bullets. Mather and his men were retreating into the compound with several soldiers taking after them. I could hear Margot screaming for Addie. I wanted so badly to comfort her and tell her that things would be okay but when I looked back, she and Joseph were being hauled away by two SEALs towards the trucks. I turned away, not wanting my eyes to stray towards the ground when I knew it would distract me, and ducked into a hallway of the compound, small enough to be considered an alley.

Gunshots and yells reverberated around me as I crept, anticipating the moment when I would turn around and find myself looking down the barrel of a gun. Many of these small buildings that made up the compound had once been offices, now long abandoned after the Mexican Special Forces had stepped in after realizing what real "business" its occupants were handling. Most of them were vacant with the lack of furniture and care evident in water stains, the occasional unidentifiable critter, and the smell of decay. I was glad to have the night vision goggles; otherwise I might have been worse off. I weaved in and out of the various rooms and buildings, keeping an eye out for the one target we needed. A small part of me was worrying about Addie but I knew that capturing Mather was the key to saving her.

It took me a moment to gather that something was wrong. Very wrong. I felt secluded, not only physically, but mentally. The surrounding silence was nearly suffocating… and as I stood still and straightened up, it dawned on me: my earpiece wasn't working. No one was shouting orders in my ear though there was definitely some yelling in the distance. In a low voice, I asked for David. When he didn't answer, I tried Ben and Scott. Still greeted by silence, I muttered, "_Damn _it," and sighed.

As I stepped out into another alley, I was suddenly aware that I wasn't alone. Maybe it was the hairs standing on the back of my neck or the sharp intake of breath that I heard, but the click of a gun and a shaky voice from behind confirmed my suspicion. "Put the gun down! Slowly," it commanded quietly. I stiffened, recognizing the voice.

I did as I was told, running a million different escapes and questions through my head. The fighting seemed to have calmed down; it sounded fainter but not as hectic as it was a few minutes ago. "Don't make any sudden moves… I won't hesitate to kill you." Trying to keep still, I saw in the corner of my eye a man coming around to stand in front of me. I yearned to see his face to confirm his voice, that voice I'd only heard weeks ago. He was dressed in a heavy jacket and jeans. His handgun was pointed at me, inches away from my face. I stared at it. Were his hands shaking?

I could feel him scrutinizing my face, perhaps trying to see past the goggles. Would he shoot me right here if he knew who I was? "Are you Alex Rider?" Samuel Webb demanded. He looked no different since our encounter at Virginia Beach; he was obviously impatient and was sporting a five o' clock shadow but the nervousness was still there. Or maybe it was distress, I wasn't sure.

When I nodded he gripped the gun more tightly. "Do you have any idea how hard it is?" I stared at him, unable to comprehend his words. "Boss almost killed me himself when we found out the CIA knew it was me. I was just doing my job for God's sake!" he spat. "I've got a family that needs the money. But _you _had to come along, snooping around."

Blinking, I thought to myself that the hypocrisy behind his words was no surprise. He was clearly in a crazed state. "Sorry," I replied in an unapologetic tone. Then I shrugged. "I was just doing my job."

He frowned but seemed to not have heard me. "They came after me but… I managed to escape. Boss gave me a second chance," Webb said almost haughtily, standing a little straighter. He paused and I realized he was waiting for me to answer.

I raised an eyebrow that I knew he couldn't see. "Congratulations. Would you like a cookie?"

The smirk on his lips turned into a grimace, a snarl ripping from his throat. Before he could make a move, I took his arms and twisted just as the gun went off. My foot kicked around his knees, knocking him backwards. The walls of the buildings were close enough together to allow Webb's head to crash into one of them. He slid down to the ground and lay there immobile. I looked down at him, shaking my head at how easy it had been. Not wanting to waste any time, I pocketed the gun, which was another Sig Sauer, and picked up the rifle.

Walking down the alley again, I saw a dark blur hurtle past. I broke into a run, skidding around the corner to find the familiar cargo pants sprinting away from me. Pausing, I looked through the scope of the M4, deciding to hit him in the knee. It would be a lot of pain but it wouldn't kill, only incapacitate—the CIA needed the torture expert alive.

My finger was a millimeter from the trigger when someone threw themselves into Mather's path, blocking him. I heard the clatter of a gun dropping and, as I walked closer, saw that David had his rifle aimed at the man. Mather brought his hands up slowly and I came to a stop several yards behind him, trying to meet David's gaze. "Alex," David said, not relaxing from his position. "Are you all right?"

I breathed, "Yeah," and watched as Mather chuckled. It was a low, deep sound, almost completely at ease. He looked back and forth between us and it shouldn't have surprised me that he wasn't afraid, even when he was cornered.

"Well, isn't this working out perfectly?" he murmured, a strange edge in his tone.

And then David did something that made my blood run cold. At first, he'd been pointing his rifle menacingly at Mather, keeping him rooted to the ground. Now, he swiveled in place until the red laser shooting from it stretched across the space and stopped on my chest, a glaringly bizarre change that had my head spinning. What…?

They both seemed to have sensed my utter confusion, watching me carefully. "Alex," David said in a tight voice, "I don't want to hurt you—"

"I will," Mather put in.

"—but you're gonna have to do as I say." David nodded towards me. "I want everything on the ground."

Feeling numb, I placed the rifle at my feet, mechanically removing the combat knife and Sig Sauer guns. I was shaking and I felt like my knees might give out from underneath me as I stood back up. My mind refused to believe this was happening.

"Can I do the honors?" Mather asked, eyeing me eagerly.

David sighed, still never removing the red laser from where it pierced me. "Knock yourself out. We don't have much time."

Mather was already approaching me, an amused sneer playing across his face. "Actually, I was thinking about _him_," he said to David. I wanted to protest but my plea was stuck in my throat.

The last thing I saw was his fist flying towards me.

* * *

**Note: **Please please review! :)


	14. Et Tu, Brutus?

**Note: ***deep breath* Alrighty guys, my deadline for finishing this story is coming up REAL fast. School starts on the 22nd and I _cannot _be writing my vital last chapters with homework waiting for me. That gives me a week and a half to somehow make the last 3 or 4 chapters appear. If you haven't guessed, this means getting stressed out before school even starts. Agh. So yeah, this chapter was a bit hurried. The first half is alright but towards the end it gets a little unsatisfactory (for me anyway) because I was practically scraping the bottom of the barrel trying to get this up.

But I'd like to thank you all for the lovely reviews, I really do like hearing your opinions!

Also! If you haven't seen it posted already, _EtchedInDiamond _wrote an amazing oneshot based on this fic; it's called "A Day in Acapulco." It's basically about the day that Joshua Daniels died and it's pretty fantastic. Some of the details from that particular fic are included in the next few chapters so credit goes to _EtchedInDiamond _for that because it also helped clear some holes I had in my plot. yay(:

Most people will get confused with the chapter title but I'll clarify it: it's based off of Julius Caesar's last words and is intended to represent the betrayal of a close friend. I'd say it fits well (;

Chapter Fourteen – Et Tu, Brute? (You too, Brutus?)

-Addie-

I had never been so terrified in my whole life.

Of course, there was the exception of a few things like the house fire and Kylie's seizure… but this was entirely different. And that was because my mind was scrabbling for purchase as it darted between the millions of things I was afraid of and afraid for. I could feel my parents reaching for me somewhere far away but I was also aware of Alex in the middle of all this peril. My heart thudded painfully in my chest for fear of someone discovering that I was very much alive, not to mention that they would probably shoot me on the spot or take me away.

I was lying there with my sore cheek pressed against the ground, trying to breathe as inconspicuously as possible. The two "bullets" had jabbed me painfully and if it weren't for the surprise they took me by, I wouldn't have managed to drop dead successfully and convincingly. It had taken all my nerve and self-control not to jump up and join in the melee when it all broke out, the shouts and screams of my mother threatening to make me wince. I had to trust that she and Dad were safe… now it was Alex and David I was worried about. And everyone else who was fighting for me.

I'd been told to either wait until I was sure that there was no one else around or count to one hundred; otherwise someone, if the opportunity presented itself, was supposed to come grab me and take me to one of the dump trucks while the others tried to secure the target, aka Mather. But once the chaos had turned towards the compound, I couldn't ignore the feeling that someone might've been watching me, no matter how quiet and deserted it seemed.

Trying to ease the worry eating away at my stomach, I decided to follow orders and counted to one hundred… then again in Spanish and then in French. It should've felt like a long time but it almost made no difference in my emotions. I was fighting between staying down longer just in case and getting up to do things myself.

Coincidentally, my ears picked up soft footsteps somewhere behind my head. I froze and then tried to ease up a little, not wanting to appear too stiff. Whoever it was came to a stop in front of my face and I fought down the urge to open my eyes. A few seconds passed by slowly and then there was a poking and prodding on my back. I realized that the prowler was inspecting my fake wounds, which—considering how elite the sniper was—had theoretically entered through my spine and heart. A hand grabbed my shoulder, making my heart stutter, and rolled me over until I was on my back. Impulsively, I held my breath so my chest wasn't moving and thanked my lucky stars that the few years of diving before swimming had enabled me to hold my breath for at least half a minute (which, in water, is a long time.)

It did no good.

The touch of cold steel was unmistakable on my forehead, sending icy shocks of fear down to my toes. If I hadn't been holding my breath, it would've caught in surprise. Instead, I let myself breathe again as a voice from somewhere above me said, "Now, you listen here, little missy. As much as I wouldn't like to mess up your impressive little plan, I have orders to follow. So why don't you do me a favor and open those pretty eyes."

I hesitated for a moment, deliberating. Then I opened my eyes and almost frowned, wondering if I'd really gone insane. There was no one standing above me, just pitch black darkness. Then my eyes adjusted and I could faintly make out the outline of the man with wild curly hair, confirming that the gun held to my face was real.

I could hear the grin in his voice. "There we go. Now get up."

As I slowly pushed myself into a sitting position, he suddenly snatched me by my arm and yanked me onto my feet. The move made me gasp in surprise and I jerked away, balling a hand into a fist. My leg protested in response to the beating my body was taking. He only snickered and waved the gun, which was still held inches from my head. "Nuh-uh-uh!" he sang quietly but tauntingly. "Hitting me wouldn't be a good idea." He put a hand on my shoulder and spun me around to face the dark compound where the sounds of fighting were faint but heard. "Just remember who's in there. You don't want your bad actions reflecting upon your little spy boyfriend, do you?"

I swallowed and gritted my teeth. It was taking all of my strength to not whirl around and punch this insolent ass in the jaw but better judgment told me that he would take me where I needed to go… wherever that was. I only hoped that David, Ben, and Alex and the rest of the rescue team were safe. I would ensure that if it meant dealing with _this _man.

With him ushering me forward and barking instructions, I entered the compound in between two of the small buildings.

If I didn't find Alex, or if I did and something horrible had happened, what was I going to do? Not for the first time, I was moving forward without an actual plan. Instead of trying to trust that the given orders were the best, I was going against them… because I just had to. Mom and Dad were safe—I needed to believe that. This whole thing might've been centered on me but I felt obligated to do something other than keep myself safe. I wasn't that kind of person, as Alex had described, the type that would obediently sit around and wait when I had to be capable of more than that.

I couldn't deny that I didn't want to lose him. Even if he _had _lied to me, even if I'd been so angry about it at first, that didn't make my feelings about him waver. In the back of my mind I knew why he had to do it and if I'd had been in his shoes and developed something more than friendly attraction towards him, I was sure I would have done the same thing. But then that made me wonder: had I been wrong about everything being a lie? I'd seen the way he looked at me after getting out of the dump trucks. Could I really believe that some of this was real?

All of this was being processed and analyzed in my mind, distracting me from the true matter at hand: I was alive and somehow, Mather's men had found out.

Or maybe it was the fake wounds. Had this man come to make sure I was dead and seen through the blood and gashes? It was either that or Mather knew that the CIA wouldn't really kill me. Whatever the reason, it made me angry to know that if I'd just stopped counting to one hundred in Spanish, I would've had plenty of time to get up and not be captured. Maybe I'd have run into this guy and managed to knock him out.

"Hey! I said to turn here!"

His hushed shouts caught my attention. I blinked, trying to make sense of where we were. We'd made our way further into the compound and entered one of the buildings, taking the stairs to a level below the ground. The basement? We couldn't be in the tunnels yet; the hallway down here still had concrete walls with old, square flickering lights in the ceiling. The room he was gesturing towards was completely empty and windowless. Something thick and pungent was in the air, making me itch to cover my nose.

"Is this how you plan on killing me?" I asked. "Condemning me to die in suffocation?" I could almost see Alex grinning; his wittiness had started rubbing off on me.

"Just get in," he ordered roughly. Well… perhaps he thought only his own jokes were funny.

Before I could go in, a movement beyond his shoulder caught my eye. I was going to look away when he turned around, spotting the SEAL who'd been approaching him silently.

"No!" I shouted and threw myself at the man as he brought his gun up. Two shots rang through the hall and I collided with him, bringing us both to the floor. The gun fell from his hand but the fallen soldier was forgotten; he swung at me and I ducked, throwing a punch to his stomach. The next thing I knew, it was like me and Joshua wrestling again.

I couldn't remember how many times we'd tumbled together across the grass in the backyard, gripping each other in headlocks and him throwing me over his shoulder. Usually he'd never put me down, even when I was pounding my fists against his back and demanding it. Sometimes he won and sometimes I did, though I'd always had the feeling he let me.

Except I had no choice but to win this time… unless I wanted to die. This one was no game. Already I could feel the bruises starting to form but I had the energy. It was stemming not only for survival but in hatred for this man. He'd helped kidnap my parents and for all I knew, maybe Alex too. People like him were the reason I risked my life… because he took others'.

Now I was on his back, clinging to his neck and hoping to cut off his circulation. As he began to stagger, fumbling for my fingers, all of a sudden he backed into the wall, all the while slamming me against it. I heard the breath whooshing out of my lungs and I felt my grip loosen, letting me fall to the floor.

I couldn't get to my feet fast enough. The tip of his boot was a rock sinking into butter; stars exploded before my eyes as the pain erupted in my gut. His laughter echoed in my ears as I rolled over painfully, curling into myself as if that would make it feel better. I struggled not to retch right there onto the floor, though I wouldn't have minded to rub his face in it.

As if he knew what I was thinking, he bent down, forcing me to look at him. There was two of him, three… and then a handful of them. Through my unfocused eyes he grinned, blood trickling from the many corners of his mouths. "I told you attacking me wouldn't turn out so well. If only you could imagine what that Rider kid is gonna have to endure now…"

That did it.

Mustering up all the strength I had left, I snapped my fist back and brought it forward. Ten fists hit ten men, throwing them backward onto the floor. It took a few moments and some really deep breaths to regain enough balance to stand. My body ached and complained and my knuckles felt sore from the punch. I wondered if I'd done something to my partially-healed leg. Was it supposed to feel like it was on fire?

I stood over his unconscious body and said, "Didn't anyone ever tell you it's not nice to hit girls?"

Even I knew that that didn't stop most criminals, if not all, from getting what they wanted.

A groan startled me. I realized that the SEAL was alive, sprawled onto the ground a few yards away. As quickly as I could, I limped over and dropped to my knees. "Lieutenant?" I panted. Blood was already soaking through above his name on his jacket, and after a swift assessment, I saw that the second bullet had managed to hit his thigh.

"Daniels…"

"Don't worry, sir," I reassured him as I rummaged through his vest. "You're going to be fine. Have you called for Boyd yet?" Boyd was the SEAL team's medic.

"No, but listen to me…" he tried again.

I kept going. "Why not? You don't have any first aid stuff in your vest. Is it in your backpack?" I bit my lip, knowing I wouldn't be able to take it off without hurting him.

"Daniels!" The authority in his voice didn't waver. I froze, staring at him. "Radio comms is down. We lost it almost the minute we opened fire. I imagine Jenkins and O'Brien have already sent for backup if they made it to the boat with your parents. They'll be here in a few minutes. _You _need to stop worrying about me and get yourself out of here. Take the last truck."

I found myself shaking my head slowly and then more vigorously. "No… sir. I can't—I can't do that."

He glared at me and then grimaced in pain. I reached for him though I was unsure of what to do. "Why not? That's an order, Daniels, not an option."

"What about Alex and David? And—and Ben? We can't leave them, I have to go look—"

"You are our priority. If Mather and his men still know that you're here, they'll continue fighting," he said softly. "Think of what that means for our team."

I fought down the hysteria coming on. He was right. It was never going to stop but there had to be _something _I could do. I didn't want to think of leaving anyone behind. "But what happened to never leaving a man behind?" I asked Scott, smiling weakly.

He chuckled and it sounded strong despite his injuries. "You're absolutely right. We never leave a man behind. But I also take my job seriously when it comes to keeping specific people alive… and that means you. I mean it when I say I'm sure they're fine."

"We haven't lost anyone yet?" I asked, watching him carefully. The dim light we were under made him look paler.

Sighing, he admitted, "We lost Chavez. Shot point blank."

I could feel his eyes on me as I processed that information. Even if I didn't know the Mexicans, he was still another man that died in this operation. And it helped harden the resolve forming in my heart and mind. "Alright. I'll go. Just let me help you."

I managed to carefully extract the first aid kit from his backpack and quickly treated his wounds, tying a tourniquet around his leg. It pained me to leave him here, especially when the man who'd taken me earlier was only unconscious feet away. Scott took notice of my concern and waved it off. "Hand me his gun. I'll take care of him if he wakes up."

And then I did just that, not knowing what exactly he meant but not caring enough to stop worrying about what I was about to do.

* * *

-Alex-

I woke up to pain and the sound of voices.

I forced my eyes open and then closed them again; a lone but unusually bright light hung above me, blinding me momentarily. After the spots disappeared from my vision, I looked down at myself and saw that I was still dressed in the combat gear with the exception of the assault vest and anything else that held weapons. My back no longer sported the tactical backpack and cold air cooled my sweaty head. That would explain why I could see the light too easily—the helmet and goggles were gone too. My hands were bound tightly behind me, around a rickety, fragile chair.

Flexing my jaw sent it into agony, enough to give me a momentary headache. Whatever hit I'd taken had been hard. I ran my tongue over my teeth and winced. It was a wonder that I hadn't broken any teeth.

The room I was in was rather small, the size of an average bedroom, but the ceiling was low. I could probably reach it just by standing. There were grimy, windowless walls that looked brownish grey rather than white and an overwhelming stench that was like death in a sewer. One door let out into what looked like one of the tunnels, carved out of dark brown rock with naked bulbs hanging from the "ceiling." I could hear voices from just outside the door.

"… still alive," one voice was saying. It sounded like David. "Do _not _let her out of your sight, do you understand me?"

"Should I blindfold her?" another asked.

"No. She'll be dead soon enough that it won't matter." That was definitely Mather.

His words were like the serrated edge of a knife, digging into my skin. Before the fury could fully take over me, David walked through the door. He looked haggard; still wearing the combat gear, he'd shed the helmet and rifle, revealing his worn face. Seeing him sent a flood of memories into my brain and my emotions peaked.

"Oh, you're awake," he commented, coming to stand in front of me.

I just glared at him, hoping my eyes would say what my mouth couldn't.

Mather walked into the room then, looking slightly annoyed. His eyes landed on me and instantly brightened, a small grin spreading on his face. I struggled to keep myself in check, wishing that I could wipe that smirk off.

"Alright, Alex," David said as he stepped around me. I stared straight ahead though it went against my instincts to let him out of my sight. Eventually he came back around with a chair just as fragile-looking as the one I sat in and placed it a few feet in front of me. He swung it around backwards so that when he sat in it, he could lean his arms against the back. There was something careful about the way he looked at me and it made me uncomfortable. "How much do you know about me?"

"Not much… except that you're a _traitor_." I flinched at the pain in my jaw.

He continued looking at me, not giving away any emotion, which unnerved me. "Look, Alex, I know you don't want to hear this—"

"If it's an apology, it's too late for that," I nearly growled.

"The sooner you shut up, the longer I'll prolong your death, Rider," Mather snapped, his eyes narrowing as he stepped closer.

David held up a hand towards him but didn't remove his gaze from mine. "I'm going to tell you how you've ended up here, Alex. I figure that you should at least know the truth…"

_Before I die, _I thought bitterly.

"I won't bore you with the details of the first twenty years of my life so I'll skip to when I joined the CIA. I've been an agent for several years. I started with them right after college. I learned quickly, throwing myself into training and studies, and soon enough, I began working with some of the agency's best people. It's a real honor knowing that you're good enough to work with them… eventually good enough to become a unit leader." He gave a wry smile. "Unfortunately, with responsibility come a lot of things besides the thrill of being a well-respected figure. I had to see a lot of good agents go and I gotta tell you, it isn't easy knowing some of your friends won't come back." He shifted in the chair and sighed. "One of those particular times took place here in Mexico. Have you heard of Acapulco de Juárez? It's just south of Mexico City, on the coast, and a very beautiful place. I was there with two others, a young, somewhat inexperienced agent—only because this was his first assignment—and our case officer. This was before Addie had come along, almost two years ago. Brian and Julia were still part of my unit but not part of this assignment.

"Anyway, after almost two weeks of what was looking like a wild goose chase with unsuccessful recon, we found out that a certain convict was in town. You can probably guess who I mean."

I said nothing, keeping my eyes on him.

"That day called for more reconnaissance but this time, we knew we were going to get something. I mean, it was _Castillo. _We would have been damn insane to let him go without doing anything." David shook his head, looking lost in thought. "Olsen reported to us that he was having a jolly good time with three other drug traffickers, and honestly, that scared the shit out of me."

I wanted to frown; I'd never heard David speak or act this way. In fact, there was a side to him coming out that I never would have picked out if he'd kept up that pretense of caring for Addie. Were his true colors showing?

Plus, there was something about his story that was also being revealed, like the codes on the back of cards that you had to scratch away with a coin. Subconsciously I knew what it was but again, it was refusing to expose itself to me. I tugged at the ties on my wrists uneasily, half wanting to know what the truth was and half needing to bolt without a backwards glance.

"The whole thing did scare me, both in a terrifying and exciting way. I've worked some major cases but I'd never been asked to do something this big. Imagine what it must've been like for the new kid. Busting a huge criminal on his first job." David chuckled at a memory. "We ended up posing as waiters, smuggling in a few gadgets to help us out if we couldn't catch the entire conversation taking place between the men. The kid's nerves got the best of him but we pulled out of that place with more than enough to figure out Castillo's plans."

He paused then, a dark look crossing his face. "As an agent, you have to be prepared for anything. You can't assume that you're one hundred percent safe, no matter where you are. Your entire life is based on your job; safety plays into many factors. If you're buying a house, you have to be meticulous enough to not allow any kind of easy break-ins or attempted assassinations. Having too many windows is a huge risk, especially if it's easy to see into your house or climb a tree into it."

Mather cleared his throat and David looked up at him. Then he glanced at me and explained, "As prepared as I thought I was, I will never forget that very night. Olsen called my hotel room a few hours after we gathered Intel on Castillo. He sounded nervous but I knew he was even angrier. A colorful mouth that guy's got. He was pissed that the young agent hadn't met with him when he was supposed to—you can't miss these kinds of things. Of course, because of that and the fact that the kid was usually pretty good with this stuff, I went to check things out. I stopped by his hotel room with a couple other agents I'd called in and…"

His fists clenched and I could see the tendons standing out under his skin. "It was a mess. I couldn't believe my eyes; I'd never seen anything so… so… gruesome." I could see the truth starting to appear underneath the silver film, David's words scratching it away. "I barely recognized him. I probably wouldn't have if it weren't for the silver ring in his pocket that he'd showed me earlier that day."

And then there it was. I knew exactly what he was talking about… and David sensed my understanding, watching me. "I still don't get it," I said. "What made you decide to go after his sister? Vengeance? Did his ruining the assignment taint your image?"

His eyes flashed but his voice was calm. "I was shocked and upset. I'm not going to go into the details of why because I have more important things to tell you. After her brother's death, Addie was jumping at every opportunity to try to get me to recruit her. She'd only mourned for a few days but already she was practically begging me to pull a few strings and have her as a part of the unit before she was even a legal adult. I don't even know for sure how she ever managed to convince her parents." He ran a hand through his hair and looked away, somewhere behind me. It seemed like he was reliving all these moments, the ones that evidently changed his life.

"Though I didn't know her well then, I knew what she was capable of. I heard a lot of stories from her brother and some training exercises had only proved his words. When we were close to completing the recruitment process, I received a… 'special' package at home," he told me, starting to hesitate. "There was a lot of information in the file, the kind that you didn't get even from the CIA. It was everything, _everything _about my life and even my family: my wife, parents, and siblings…

It was perfect," he admitted tiredly. "The perfect way to blackmail someone into working for you."

He said no more after that but I wasn't satisfied. He hadn't given me all the answers, the whole truth. "What did he ask you to do?"

He didn't have to ask to know who I meant. "Since I work for the CIA and often go to its headquarters, I was supposed to—and still am—find a way to weaken it. There were no specifics; I had to figure it out on my own. I didn't know what to do though! I considered wiping out information, leaking secrets, but none of it seemed _right._"

I snorted but he ignored me.

"That's not what I meant. Of course I would've been committing a federal crime for any of those but what I mean is: none of it seemed like it would actually help Castillo himself. His instructions were very… explicit.

"But then our unit started working assignments that were loosely related to him. Of course, we couldn't do anything too far into the field what with Addie being a minor and her parents being, well, parents, but it was good enough for me. I realized that having such a young agent was an unusually good benefit, so that was a good thing… in more ways than one.

"I can't tell you how overwhelmed I was when we managed to get you to fly here, Alex. I thought, Sure it might be a little more difficult getting rid of Addie but if things go my way, Castillo will be satisfied, _especially _if he knows that Alex Rider was involved."

"You're sick," I spat, leaning forward. The ties dug into my skin. "I thought she was 'like a little sister' to you! How could you work with her for two years knowing what you were doing?"

David stood up from the chair, frustration warping his features. "She _is _like a little sister to me! I didn't even realize what I had to do about her until last year. You don't think it's hard for me to accept that I have to… I have to…" He winced, seemingly unable to say it.

"What? Kill her? Is that what you're trying to say? You're still sick, David. And she trusted you too. Wait until she hears about this."

"He threatened my family, Rider!" David shouted, stepping closer. I could feel spittle on my face as he continued to yell. "He knows everything about me! I can't put them into that kind of danger, not when there's a way to prevent it. My wife is seven months pregnant too. You think I could bear to have her killed? What's one life if I can save many?"

I spoke through clenched teeth. "I'd say congrats but that doesn't feel appropriate. 'Sorry' is more like it; no one deserves to have a father like you."

I'd seen many madmen in my life, in just the eighteen years I've been alive. But there was something about David that wasn't particularly inhumane or even bestial. It was something that inhabited his very being and made him seemingly insane, and though that description fit anyone from Damian Cray to Nikolei Drevin, it set him apart. There was a part of him—a part that maybe even he didn't know existed—that knew what he was doing and knew it well. It was the angel on his shoulder trying to guide him while the devil on the other whispered into his ear. He was in there, the David that Addie knew, the one I could've gotten along with.

But was that really any reason to hope? He wasn't going to give into his morals now, not when the fear of losing everything was in the way. And so that had me thinking of Addie, thinking of us, and wondering the same question over and over.

How were we going to survive this?

* * *

**Note: **Review please! I know it wasn't the best chapter but I'll probably end up changing a few things.


	15. Aut Viam Inveniam Aut Faciam

**Note: **I don't really have anything to say because I'm brain-dead and sleep-deprived... Why must I be so fond of my story and its characters?!

_Sandd: _Thank you for deciding to check out this fic, I'm happy you're enjoying it(:

_Roxanne's Diary: _Haha, yes, that was the translation that came with the phrase but it also said that it could be loosely translated into "You too, Brutus?" Thanks for letting me know though!

Thanks so much to everyone else who reviewed.

xx

Chapter Fifteen – Aut Viam Inveniam Aut Faciam (I Will Either Find a Way or Make One)

-Alex-

Only a few minutes had passed and I already looked and felt like a bruised banana. Not only did my jaw hurt, but so did my entire torso and head, having taken blows from the smug and impatient torture expert. Apparently (and to no one's surprise) he had a thing for taking any opportunity to beat someone and I usually granted him one by back talking David and, once, spitting on the ground. The taste of blood was evident in my mouth but that was the least of my stomach's worry; David was the one who disgusted me.

At first he'd protested against Mather's insatiable urge to sock me, earning him a sarcastic comment about his sudden pacifist views by yours truly. Once another blow had been delivered, David had stopped snapping at him and continued his storytelling in between Mather's strikes. I'd eventually decided to shut up since my stomach couldn't keep up with my mouth.

Things were becoming clearer though. With the understanding came more frustration and loathing because I was having difficulty feeling sorry for the CIA agent. It turned out that David had really been behind every step of Addie's assassination. Mather wasn't even in charge. He'd been hired as a scapegoat to lure everyone's prying eyes away. The man was a torture expert for sure, but he virtually knew nothing else about kidnapping or anything of that sort. He relied on his sole skill to get him places, working for people like Castillo.

The failed gas station assignment had been part of the first stage, naming Addie as a target. Bringing me in was supposedly one of the better additions because even though it looked like an act of pure desperation in keeping her safe, it was only adding a bigger prize to the equation. The broken window sensors had only been evidence that supported the seizure-inducing Twix candy; David himself had stored it into Addie's chocolate stash, even when he'd known it was probably going to fail.

And the house fire… That was the only part that hadn't gone as scheduled. The text message Addie had received was meant to get her kidnapped while David's text to me was going to get me out of the house too. Margot and Joseph were supposed to have perished in the fire. When Addie hadn't gone after "Derek," the plan changed drastically, leaving her parents missing instead and David scrambling for a backup strategy.

"I knew I was playing the overprotective card too well," he'd revealed, "but eventually I was going to allow both of you on the team for extraction. And then you told us this brilliant plan involving fake blood and a sniper…" He'd shaken his head but I wasn't sure if it was out of amazed disbelief or disapproval. "How did you ever come up with it?"

"Saw it in a movie," I'd responded, trying to control my voice.

Played the overprotective card, did he? I couldn't and didn't want to believe it. He'd really had me fooled into thinking he cared about Addie. Everything about him had screamed _scared _and _determined, _creating the perfect illusion for someone who didn't want to see anyone close to them go… and that's what made it horribly ironic. He was frightened for himself and his family but here he was, betraying Addie so easily.

I asked about Samuel Webb and Mather laughed. "He was nothing. We intended him to pose as a criminal doing recon so it looked like we didn't have enough information. Of course, with David on the inside, we had everything we needed. Webb didn't even know it himself." Then he shrugged. "It gave me an excuse to try and kill him."

"But you didn't," I stated dully.

His eyes narrowed. "No, I didn't. Why? Were you chasing each other out there?"

"He was pretty proud of himself for escaping the authorities."

He grunted. "Yeah, well I'm not the authorities."

"Enough," David snapped, glaring at us. "We don't have much time. Is the truck ready?" he asked Mather.

"It should be."

He nodded and then trained his dark eyes on me. "I hope you're enjoying the last few minutes of your life, Alex." The words sounded strange coming out of his mouth. They didn't seem like something he would say.

"I'm not sure I'd say that I'm _enjoying _my time with you, Agent."

He raised an eyebrow. "Here's the plan from now on. I'm still the David Reyes that works for the CIA. Mather is still a bloodthirsty criminal who wants you and Addie. One of our men—and by that, I mean Mather's—should have her by now. They'll be taking her away from here and away from you. It's nothing to worry about; you'll join her soon." He smirked and I knew that he wasn't just "David Reyes that works for the CIA." He was the David Reyes that was utterly hopeless.

"Meanwhile, I'll have just barely escaped but fortunately, Mather will be dead."

Mather, for once looking confused rather than arrogant, stuttered, "Dead?"

"Dead," David affirmed and, in the blink of an eye, had his handgun out. The shot made me jump, startling me when I hadn't even recovered from the incredulity gathering from his words. The torture expert collapsed but the agent barely spared him a glance, only allowing a slight grimace as if he actually felt bad.

I was about to protest when I heard a sort of popping noise. It sounded odd as it echoed through the underground tunnels and bounced off the room's walls but it didn't take long to register what it was. It was a scatter of gunshots accompanied by shouting, almost a perfect carbon copy of the noise being made earlier in the operation.

He glanced at me quickly, an expression close to panic lining his face. He started towards the door and then stopped to look at me. "Don't move an inch, Rider." Then he went and leaned out into the hallway, shouting for someone. I could tell he wasn't going to leave the room at all, not when the backup team of SEALs was on its way. I could only hope that they got here fast enough.

The gunshots were getting closer. Though I had been in it all along, I could feel the danger looming like a monster out of a nightmare. My growing panic was nearly tangible, making me sweat. Despite the number of times I had escaped death, I doubted I had much of a chance of survival, even if help was coming. Was I even right to say that there were more soldiers for us out there? Or were we still outnumbered? I could hardly think straight, not with my impending demise—and possibly Addie's—hanging over me.

Sooner or later David stepped back in, checking his gun. "Now…" he said, approaching me. He was all business now, a funny change from the frightened look that had crossed his face just a minute ago. Perhaps he'd taken a hit when I wasn't looking, a good dose of "confidence." He held up the gun. "If you make any move to escape, I will put a bullet in you," he threatened. The plastic tie around my wrists was gone, releasing me from the chair. Another one, pink this time, appeared in his hand and I deliberately brought both of mine in front of me, pretending to cooperate. I let him bind me once more and pull me to my feet.

"What are you going to do?" I asked.

Tugging on me again, he began towards the rocky, misshapen tunnel. "You are valuable; no one wants you killed. And frankly, that's in my favor." I could hear the fighting now, shouts and more gunshots ringing from somewhere ahead of us. I knew I shouldn't fool myself: these walls were amplifying sounds. They could've still been far away. "You're going to run," he instructed me in a calm tone. "Pretend you've escaped. One of Mather's men will stop and hold you at gunpoint, threatening your life. That should hold the SEALs, allowing a few of them to be killed, the others injured."

"Why?" I tried to distract him while desperately searching for a way out. The barrel of his gun was poking painfully into my side.

"Stop asking questions," David snapped and then took a deep breath. "We have to make it look like they were overpowered. That way I can—"

The tip of my boot caught on the dusty dirt floor, sending me sprawling. I managed to catch myself though and I heard him bark angrily again at me. "Get up!" Obediently, I straightened up, feeling his gaze burn into me. But before he could take another step, I made my move.

Lashing out quickly, I made contact with the hand holding the gun, causing David to cry out and drop it. The knife I'd pulled from my boot clattered to the floor but I no longer needed it. I was going to have to thank Ben later. Taking advantage of his momentary incapacitation, I spun around on one foot, using the other to connect with his head in a classic roundhouse kick. He buckled as I dove for the gun.

"Damn you, Rider," he groaned weakly as I stood over him, the barrel pointed at his head. "I guess I should've seen that coming." He laughed softly. "Can't blame Mrs. Jones for her protectiveness over you."

I said nothing, my eyes fixed on his. Black hatred coursed through me, making my hands shake involuntarily. I struggled to get a grip and keep a clear head. I didn't want to make any rash decisions but it seemed impossible, staring into a traitor's eyes.

David finally seemed to understand where he was. I saw the desperation in his face, the pleading look that tried to break through the determination I felt. "Please, Alex," he rasped, trying to sit up. "You wouldn't kill a man in cold blood, would you?"

Shaking my head, I stepped closer and steeled myself. "You're not a man… You're a coward."

There was a single gunshot, and then silence.

I froze, completely stunned. David's blood began seeping to the tunnel floor, staining the already dark rock. His eyes were still open, the last emotions he'd felt drifting and leaving a blank mist in their wake. I groped for a sense of understanding, my finger still posed and ready on the trigger.

"Alex!"

Looking up, I saw someone down the tunnel frantically waving me over. It was one of the Mexican Special Forces soldiers. My gaze flickered between the gun in his hand and David, and then landed on the gun in my own hands… the one that had yet to be shot. Shaking the disbelief from my head, I left the body behind, suddenly relieved that the man was here. It was just another sure sign that I would make it alive.

The Mexican soldier stood in between two of the hanging bulbs, his face slightly shadowed. I read his name on the jacket: CHAVEZ. I wanted to ask him why'd he'd shot David but I figured there was time for that later. I could still hear some fighting going on at the opposite end of the tunnel. "Here, take this," I said, handing him the gun. "Cut this tie, will you?"

He didn't answer. Instead, he removed the helmet, revealing a wicked grin that very closely resembled the Cheshire Cat's from _Alice in Wonderland_.

I groaned lightly. _Oh no._

It was Samuel Webb.

* * *

-Addie-

I was lost.

After leaving Scott like he'd ordered, I'd gone back upstairs and started searching. I held his Glock in my hands, which gave me a sense of safety, but that didn't really compensate for the dead ends I was reaching. The compound that I'd originally thought was quite small had turned out to be a labyrinth. Every abandoned office looked the same and I couldn't seem to find a way underground. I'd sought for trapdoors and even elevators, yet it only got more frustrating… and then repulsive when I crossed three dead bodies, all Mather's men. I hadn't even come across anyone alive, ally or enemy. It made me feel sadly pathetic.

As I kicked down a door in the hallway of a building, I wondered to myself how much time had passed. Things had taken a turn so quickly and though it had felt like a few short minutes ago, I knew it was longer. My body was aware that it was in the middle of the night; aside from the aches and pains from the fighting, there was the familiar heavy fatigue I knew all too well from Arianna's sleepovers. Virginia was two hours ahead of Mexico and if I was correct, it was nearly five in the morning there.

I turned to leave the empty room that looked horrifyingly similar to the last several I'd been in, and my heart jumped. A figure was standing in the doorway, their stance offensive. It took a split second to decide to bring my gun up and shoot but another to recognize the red laser pointing at my chest. Heart thudding and fear lingering, I drew my hands up, trying to find out who the soldier was.

"Addie?"

I exhaled in relief. "Ben!"

He lowered his rifle and straightened up as I walked towards him. "Are you okay? What are you doing here?"

"I'm fine, just a few bruises. One of Mather's men took me." He opened his mouth but I waved him off. "Scott managed to help me out but he took a hit to his shoulder and thigh."

He sucked in a breath. "Is he…?"

"No, he's alright. He ordered me to leave him and get out of here." I realized as I said the words that it was obvious I hadn't done that. Ben knew that too and was eyeing me with a scolding look. "I was looking for you," I added defensively.

"Just me?" He raised a brow.

Sighing, I admitted, "Alex and David, too. I'm not leaving here until everyone is safe. We lost Chavez but if we can prevent our fatalities from going any higher—"

"I'm sure they're fine, Addie," Ben interrupted, "but you still shouldn't be here."

I controlled the urge to roll my eyes. "You're not the first to say that."

"And I won't be the last." He stepped back into the hall, indicating me to follow him. "Come on. You and I are going to get the lieutenant and get out of here."

"He said that they were coming, the backup team," I said, lowering my voice as we hurried quietly but swiftly down the hall.

He glanced at his watch. "If your parents made it, then yes, they should be here by now."

We snuck through the darkness in silence for another few minutes. By the time we were downstairs, about to exit the building, I could no longer ignore the overwhelming anxiety and tension I was feeling. Ben seemed to take notice and he was able to ask the question before I could bring it up myself.

"You're worried about him, aren't you?"

"Of course I am," I answered, trying to keep the edge out of my tone. "Aren't you?"

"Of course I am." His grin was visible even in the night, but then he turned serious again. "And I'm positive that he's worried about you as well. He would probably side with me, saying that you need to keep yourself safe."

I only sighed, earning a chuckle from the MI6 operative. I started forward again through the compound but stopped when I realized that he was no longer beside me. He stood frozen in his crouch, one hand pressed to his ear. Anxiety seared through me as I hurried back to him. "What? What is it?"

He held up a finger, obviously concentrating on something. Impatience wracked my every nerve until he finally turned to me and whispered, "They've arrived, the rest of the SEAL team. They got the radio comms fixed. We'll rendezvous at the edge of the compound." A surge of relief enveloped me though it didn't eliminate all my fears. I wasn't going to be able to breathe evenly until I saw Alex's face alive.

It didn't take long to find our way back to where the pandemonium all started. My sense of direction may have been obliterated earlier when I could barely find my way around but now everything had sharpened, giving me new purpose if not strength. The feeling close to claustrophobia disappeared once we stepped out from between two of the buildings. There were five of them and a Humvee stood a little ways away near the dump truck. As we neared, I noticed that none were Jenkins or O'Brien, our spotter and sniper. They were probably, and hopefully, still with my parents getting them safely home.

Ben quickly filled them in as I stood by, practically bouncing on my toes despite the pain. One of the SEALs frowned at me and I instantly stopped, opting for chewing on my lip instead.

"We haven't heard anything from Scott yet," the SEAL named Kessler said. "Boyd thinks he's found a way into the underground tunnels. He was going to go in himself but we suggested he come here first."

I perked up at that. He'd found a way down there? This was exactly what I'd been looking for. I leaned forward intently.

"Scott's down," Ben explained, giving them the details of what I'd told him. "We haven't seen the other two Mexican soldiers either."

"All right, we're going in." Kessler made gestures towards the other SEALs.

"Wait, what's going on?" I asked Ben. He wasn't following after them and one of the soldiers was staying behind too.

He glanced at me with his lips pressed tightly together, looking like he was debating whether or not to tell me. "They're going to look for any of ours that are alive. He and I are escorting you back to the boat like it was supposed to be done earlier." He nodded towards the SEAL.

"What? No, you can't do that!" I attempted to keep my voice down. "I _have _to go with the team; I need to help them!" _And I want to be there when they find Alex… no matter if he's dead or alive._

"No, you don't," he insisted calmly. "Do you really want them worrying about your safety while they try to rescue David and Alex?"

I just glared at him and crossed my arms, too angry for words. A piece of me knew he was right but I was too stubborn and set on my goal to budge. My heart ached to run back there and use myself as bait, but my mind whispered that it was tired and that my resolve was useless. I hated to think of the possibility, but if I didn't distance myself right away, more lives would be taken. I didn't want to be responsible for that.

"Your parents are waiting for you, Addie." Ben spoke softly, gazing at me. I looked away with my chin set, but the defeat was heavy in the air.

He took me gently by the elbow, spinning me to face the town of Costa Amenas as the SEAL soldier flanked me on the other side. I'd almost forgotten this place; I'd been so caught up in the smothering compound, unaware of the life going on a quarter of a mile away. Now that I thought about it, were the citizens as oblivious to us too? Or had the gunfire startled them from their sleep? I would never know, not when the town appeared to be dead asleep. If anyone knew what was going on, they didn't show it. And for the moment, I envied them… I envied their ability to hide behind closed curtains and locked doors.

Willing myself not to cry, I let the two men take me away from the compound and the town, towards safety, towards home.


	16. Luctor Et Emergo

**Note: **Thank you, thank you for the kind reviews :) Almost there guys! Just two more to go!

Chapter Sixteen – Luctor Et Emergo (I Struggle But I'll Survive)

-Alex-

My eyes flew open in panic, my heart slamming away within my chest. A thin layer of sweat covered my skin and it wasn't hard to see why: I was lying on my back on a hard, moving surface in a patch of bright sunlight. It streamed through the two windows of a short set of double doors, illuminating my surroundings in warm golden light.

I was in a maintenance van, the sort that you would see if you'd called the cleaning company to come and get rid of the funny grey tinge in your carpet. It was completely empty except for me… and the faint scent of sharp disinfectant and lemons. From what I could tell, the vehicle was fairly new. In front of me, my hands were still bound by the stupid neon pink plastic tie but a thin rope was wrapped around my ankles.

My pulse soon returned to normal but I was sweltering and parched. I longed to shrug off my jacket. Thinking back to what I could remember, I silently cursed myself for not picking up the knife, even when, in the moment, I hadn't thought I'd need it.

Pushing myself up, I did my best to drag myself over to the doors. I got up on my knees and looked out of the windows onto a highway lined on both sides with hot desert. The sun wasn't that high, so I couldn't tell if it was before or after noon. We still had to be in Mexico… right?

There was a woman driving behind the van in a Nissan. She had two kids in the back of a car, one in a booster seat and another who looked about eight years old. Feeling a flicker of hope, I tried to get her attention, waving my tied hands and mouthing to her. Strangely, she didn't seem to notice; it looked like she was yelling at the kids but still kept her eyes in front of her. How could she not see me? Unfortunately, there were no handles on the inside and I doubted trying to kick down the doors would be any good.

I sat back down with my back against the side of the van. I recalled seeing Webb again, dressed in Chavez's gear. That was after… I shut my eyes tightly, letting my head fall into my hands. Webb had shot David. I was unable to find his motive in that except for childish vengeance if he had indeed found out that he was being used. And since it had obviously been at least several hours since leaving Costa Amenas, what had happened to the SEALs? Ben and Addie?

David had said that one of Mather's men should have taken her. Maybe she was going to the same place I was being taken to. I hadn't seen any other vans behind the woman in the Nissan, but I couldn't be sure.

It seemed like another thirty minutes or so that I sat there, hoping and wondering, before I eventually nodded off. I didn't know for how long I was asleep but after waking, I got a slight idea.

The van had stopped moving. The doors opened, revealing Webb and another man with distinctly Mexican features and dark skin. It was still sunny and I knew for sure that it was afternoon now. They didn't hesitate before reaching out to grab me. I was set roughly onto the ground as I took in my surroundings.

We'd parked in the small parking lot of an old warehouse. One peeling white fence stretched behind me, lining the perimeter of the area. The sky was a perfect blue, the sun beating down with nonexistent clouds to filter it. It was clear that we were in a desolate part of some city or town but I didn't think I'd get an answer if I asked.

The beat-up metal door set into the tall warehouse wall opened, revealing a middle-aged man who sported salt-and-pepper hair, a dirty t-shirt, and jeans. He didn't look at me once, but only exchanged a nod with Webb. Webb bent down with a knife to cut the rope at my feet.

It happened so quickly I could barely register it by the time it passed.

Webb was now on the ground, wrapped up in the fetal position as if he was in pain. The third man was coming on to the Mexican, who was clearly in shock with eyes and mouth wide open. He was a blur as he delivered a number of karate moves, even some that I hadn't seen before, knocking him out in the time of a few seconds.

I stood there, dumbfounded, staring at the unconscious Mexican. What had just happened?

"You have no idea how much I've wanted to beat these guys up since I've been here."

I looked up. The man was panting slightly, his hands on his waist. He met my gaze and raised his brow. "Sorry, you probably have no idea who I am." He offered his hand, about to introduce himself, but somehow, in the midst of my confusion, it clicked.

"You're CIA," I said dumbly, blinking. "Johnson, right?"

There was a groan at my feet. It was Webb, rocking back and forth in agony.

Johnson didn't look at him, merely waving a hand. "Don't worry about him. But yeah, I am. And you're Alex Rider."

I nodded.

"Well, cool. Now that introductions have been made, we should probably get out of here," he said, starting towards the van. Then he stopped, seeing the tie around my wrists. "Oh. Here."

After my wrists were free, I rubbed them tenderly and said, "I thought you were dead."

"Yeah, that was the point," he answered as we climbed in the front. "Mather was too close to finding out who I am. I had no choice but to cut off communication with the CIA." Then he glanced at me, seeming to finally realize my state. "You okay? What happened?"

I shrugged, staring out the window as the van left the warehouse parking lot. It was understandable that he pretty much had no idea what was going on, considering how excluded he'd been, but I was in no mood to go through the events. "It's a lot to explain."

Johnson just nodded. "I feel you, kid. But you don't have to worry about anything anymore… I'm taking you home."

* * *

-Addie-

"Please… please just let them go."

The mischievous grin on his face only widened, reducing my desperate hope to a measly spark. "Who's it gonna be, Addie?" he asked for the hundredth time.

David, Alex, and Kylie stared at me, their faces hauntingly somber in the face of the situation. It only made me more frantic as I sought for a loophole, another way to save their lives. I couldn't choose between them—I didn't care about my own life but for the other two that I would risk for the third. How could I be asked of such a thing?

I tried negotiating again. "Take _me_! Just take me, please, and let them go! I'm begging you—"

Mather shook his head, making a _tsk tsk _noise. "I can't do that. Your life for one of theirs. Clock's ticking," he sang, tapping his wrist. "Who's it gonna be, Addie?"

In a moment of pure hopelessness and desperation, I blurted the first name that came to my mind.

I watched as he stared at me, the smirk slipping away. His features were a mirror image of David, Alex, and Kylie's. Blank… and dead. "Wrong answer."

Three shots were fired, each one with a twin that buried itself in my heart.

* * *

"Addie?"

My eyelids fluttered but didn't open. My whole body and mind felt submerged in a thick, viscous fluid, like I was floating in molasses. I was faintly aware of the voice calling my name but it sounded far away.

"Addie, you need to wake up now."

Oh, so I was sleeping. I struggled to pull my mind away from cloudy sleep, away from the nightmare lingering in the corners of my head. Trying to get my body back into reality took a few tries but eventually, a hand shaking my shoulder did the trick.

I opened my eyes to an unfamiliar view: the tall gold curtains of a large window set into the wall were drawn, revealing the late afternoon sun as it dipped closer to the horizon, washing it in red and orange. It was definitely not my bedroom—the sheets I was wrapped up in were too soft and foreign, and the mattress felt thicker. That's when I saw my mother's kind face in front of me, her soft eyes gazing at me with carefully—though not completely—concealed worry. There was a healing cut on her chin… and it all came rushing back to me.

It was Sunday. Early yesterday morning I'd been reunited with my parents, spending the day and night with them at the hospital. Today had started out with Mom and Dad contacting various people from our insurance agent to the fire department, eventually coming to our check-in to the Hilton in Tysons Corner. They'd insisted I take it easy here while they went to recover what they could from our house… or what was left of it. I guess I'd fallen asleep and now they were back.

"I didn't really want to wake you," Mom said with an apologetic smile, "but it's already getting late and… someone's here to see you."

Only one person crossed my mind. I sat up, aware of the tangled mess of hair around my shoulders, but looking decent didn't matter to me at the moment. I looked around the room, my eyes skimming across the desk, flat screen TV, and other double bed, finally landing on the figure standing by the door.

I felt my heart sink. I'd been expecting a particular blond guest… but not this one. I watched as Kylie slowly walked towards the end of my bed, her eyes filled with nervousness and an uncertain smile on her lips. Mom patted my leg, saying, "Holler if you need me." Then she disappeared through the door that led to the outer sitting room/living area.

Kylie stood there awkwardly and I couldn't dispel the surprise and (though I hated to admit it) disappointment I felt. All day yesterday and today Alex had been on my mind as I worried over him, praying that he was alive and okay. Out of the hours I'd spent doing that, only a few minutes had been used to consider what I would do if I ever saw my best friend again. I'd known she would be back this weekend; I just wasn't able to figure out what I would say. Thinking back to the dream I'd had, had I been wrong to say his name over hers and David's? The Mather in my dream seemed to think so.

Guilt made itself present as she walked around the bed to sit on the long couch set into the wall under the window. She knew I was a CIA agent; that much was obvious. I could see it in the way she was being careful: sitting and not flopping onto the couch, even crossing her legs. She was uncomfortable, I knew that. I half expected her to throw one of the pillows at me but instead she just stared at the comforter.

"You're back," I said quietly, wincing lightly as my voice cracked.

"Yeah." She pursed her lips and looked up at me. "You look like hell."

I let out a small laugh, fingering the ends of my hair self-consciously. "Yeah, I guess I do." Most of the injuries were healing fine even though my stomach was worse off from the brutal kick delivered to it. Other than that, muscle aches and exhaustion were going to be my best friends for a few days.

"I'm sorry," Kylie suddenly said. "About your house, I mean."

I could only force a smile; I was afraid of what would happen if I opened my mouth.

"How are you holding up, though?"

Shrugging, I answered, "I'm okay. What about you?"

She seemed to flinch at the memory; I would have too if I wasn't pressing my lips together so tightly. "Better," she admitted. Then she appeared to remember something, sitting up and looking around the room. "Oh. Where's Alex?"

I'd told myself a thousand times over that he was alright but it had been hard to keep myself together. Ben informed me yesterday that the backup team had managed to pull Lieutenant Scott, Boyd, and the two Mexican soldiers out, but I could find little to no relief. It got even harder when he said that they hadn't found Alex or all of Mather's men… and then it became impossible when he broke the news about David.

Just like I did with Joshua, I was trying to stuff everything into a corner. My grief, his death… I refused to acknowledge any of it. But with Kylie wondering the same thing I did, I could no longer keep it shoved away.

"Addie?" I heard her say as I closed my eyes, a few tears escaping from them.

"I don't know," I said in response to her question, shaking my head. I sniffed, using the sheets to wipe my cheeks. "I don't know where he is."

The bed gave a little under her weight as she sat in front of me and took my hands. "I don't understand," she said quietly. I looked up at her. My best friend was waiting patiently, her blue eyes watching me carefully.

I don't know how I did it, but I told her everything. I started with the reason why Alex had come here, not forgetting to mention that I hadn't known the truth until Friday night. Normally she was the type of person to prod and ask questions, but although I left long enough pauses for her to voice what was on her mind, all she could manage was "Okay." The stare that she was giving me never wavered except when I mentioned David. She'd tried consoling me but I just waved her off and continued on, not wanting to linger on it.

Despite everything, I felt a little relieved by the time I was finished talking. I really didn't care that I was spilling all of this to her—she was my best friend and I owed her that much of an explanation. I was finally glad that I didn't have to make up some excuse about Alex's absence, no matter what she thought of me now.

I watched her as she sat before me with her knees up to her chin, rocking back and forth while staring out the window. The sun was almost completely set but the sky was still a blood red.

"It's a lot to take in, isn't it?" I whispered.

She met my gaze, smiling. "It sure is. I just can't believe…" She bit her lip and then began again, "I just can't believe you were even able to keep this—this side of you hidden for so long."

A pang of guilt hit me again. "I know, and it makes me feel terrible. I just wish I'd told you sooner."

"No, I understand perfectly why you couldn't. I mean, there's definitely more to being a secret agent than cool gadgets and saving the world."

I smiled sadly, remembering what Alex had told me. "Yeah…"

It was quiet for a moment until Kylie asked, "So what about Arianna? And Derek? Are you ever gonna tell them?"

I had to think about that before answering. "You know, I think I will someday, just not real soon. With finals and graduation, they don't need to worry about their best friend turning out to be some real life James Bond," I chuckled.

"Don't forget about prom," she pointed out.

"Prom," I repeated, unable to keep myself from scowling.

She gasped. "What do you mean 'prom'?" she asked, mimicking my tone. "Don't tell me you're still thinking about ditching!"

"If you haven't noticed, Ky, my house burned down. It's not like I bought a dress anyway."

The astonishment disappeared from her eyes, pity replacing it. "Right, sorry…" She looked down at her hands in thought before saying, "I'm sure he's fine, Addie. You said it yourself: he's really saved the world many times. He'll turn up sooner or later."

I just nodded, pulling the covers tightly around my shoulders.

I asked her about Florida, mostly to steer the conversation away from myself. That took up a good twenty minutes but I felt comfortable, listening to her go on about the beach, sun, and boys. It was almost like old times all over again, except I didn't have the heart to really join in. It wasn't as if I had any fascinating stories to share, unless someone wanted to hear what it was _really _like being a CIA agent. We moved on to school and graduation, expressing our mixed feelings of excitement and dread. Though the subject had come up before, she told me her plans on attending New York University while I repeated my indecision between U-PENN **(1)**, UCLA **(2)**, and good ol' Virginia State University. I managed to get her to show me a picture of her dress for prom, no matter how many times she insisted that she didn't want to make me feel bad. In the end, I was really glad that she came.

And not once did we ever mention Alex again.

* * *

**Note: **(1) U-PENN stands for University of Pennsylvania and (2) UCLA is University of California, Los Angeles... just for anyone who didn't know.

Anyway, I'm super excited for this next chapter. I'm so glad to be done with that action stuff. Whew! But wait, I can't give too much away hahah (;


	17. Ad Astra

**Note: **Soo, I had a lot of fun writing this one... and I hope you have fun reading it! I've got one last chapter to go and four days to write it. Considering the fact that I've posted, what, 3 chapters in one week, it should be easy... _except _I'd like this to end really well, so perhaps I'll take a little more time. After all, chapter 18 does play a critical part with tying into a "follow-up" *hint hint!*

There's probably no point in trying to drop hints. It'll be obvious enough in the next update haha (:

Chapter Seventeen – Ad Astra (To The Stars)

-Addie-

"I still can't believe you're making me do this."

"Oh, chill. It's not the end of the world. It's the total opposite—you should be excited for this!"

"Yeah. I'm thrilled."

I was sitting at Arianna's short, wide dresser in front of the giant mirror that complemented it. Beauty products were scattered across the surface in such a colorful mess that it gave me a headache. At the moment she was holding a scalding professional curling iron so close to my scalp I could feel its heat. I watched nervously as the steam raised upward, probably the ghost of my hair. I'd already complained that she was killing it but she said it was simply the hairspray.

"Gosh, it's like you've never styled your hair before," she'd commented.

I had frowned and retorted, "You know I have. I've just never _burned _it." And then she'd rolled her eyes.

About half an hour ago, I'd arrived here at her house thinking I was going to help her and Kylie get ready for prom. She'd surprised me by striding over to her walk-in closet and pulling out not one but _two _dresses that were concealed within their garment bags. After asking if she was just going to choose between them, I'd suddenly realized that one of them was for me.

I eyed it now as it hung on the door leading to the bathroom. Unlike Kylie's and Arianna's, it was short, not falling past my knees. I had to admit, they'd done a good job picking it out for me. Though I was never one for things too girly, almost every bit of the dress brought out something in me and my personality. The number was "cherry blossom pink," as the brand described it, and strapless with a fitted bodice that sparkled pink and gold. Instead of being tight-fitting, the layered mesh skirt flared out lightly, but definitely not enough to pass for a tutu.

Arianna had even somehow gotten my parents in on the act. Mom had gone out while I was at school to buy a pair of glittery gold pumps to match, and beautiful jewelry. It irked me a little that they did this, especially behind my back, but if I had to be honest with myself… I was kind of pleased. I might've been skeptical about the whole prom thing but a tiny part of me was insisting that I don't miss out… no matter how much I felt that it was incomplete.

I sighed as I waited patiently for Arianna to curl the next half of my head. I'd gotten real used to slowness. After last weekend's disaster, the whole week had gone by unbearably slow. Most of everyone at school had heard about the house fire and for the first few days, I'd had to deal with their apologies and offers. It was kind, I knew that, but I probably would have been more tolerant if I wasn't constantly on edge. Ben had finally come to me with good news—no, _great _news. The CIA had found Alex in Mexico along with the double agent we'd all thought was dead; however, I wasn't allowed to know all the details and though I didn't know why, it didn't matter to me. What I was concerned about was that Ben had said that I couldn't see Alex for a few days. There was all the business with letting him stay at the hospital—which I'd argued that he should be able to have visitors—and debriefing him about what had gone down after he'd been kidnapped.

And now I was wondering what was taking so long. I'd spoken to Ben every day and he told me the same thing: "Not yet, Addie. I'll let you know when he can see you again." It was painful, partly because Alex was like… well, a painkiller. No one at school besides Kylie knew that part of why I was so quiet was because I wasn't yet done grieving David. I was hoping that seeing Alex would numb me for a little bit.

Kylie walked out of the bathroom, striding over to Arianna's bedside table to turn up the volume on her iHome. Gwen Stefani's voice filled the room and she danced her way over to us, grinning widely. She'd flat-ironed her hair so it flew around her face in pin straight strands. "She's looking gorgeous!" she announced to Arianna. Her hand stretched for my curls but Arianna smacked it away with a scolding look.

"You know what I just realized?" I asked, looking at myself in the mirror.

"That I'm so right and now you really wanna go to prom?" Arianna teased.

I grimaced. "No. But I'm getting there."

She just laughed.

"I'm gonna be the odd one out," I protested, frowning at the image in my head. "I'll be the… what, ninth wheel?"

From the closet, Kylie called, "I can be your date, too! Randy will just have to share."

"And you know I'll dance with you too," Arianna reassured me, patting my shoulder.

I just crossed my arms, biting my tongue. My three best friends and Andrew Walsh, along with their dates, had planned a dinner reservation for Fleming's Prime Steakhouse before prom. Of course, they'd asked for ten seats instead of nine. _Someone, _meaning Arianna, had anticipated a certain somebody else to be my date and was totally flabbergasted when I told her that he had to go back to England. For a while, she'd muttered on about how ignorant and dim-witted some boys could be. I'd been too tired to argue that it wasn't his fault—according to me, his school had insisted that he come back if he wanted to attend college.

Arianna seemed to sense what I was feeling. "I wish he was here, too, hon. But just you wait. I know almost every guy will have his eyes on you tonight. Just not mine."

I couldn't help but laugh at that. As crazy as she was, she always knew how to make me feel better.

It didn't take that much longer for us to get ready. Once Arianna had finished with my hair, running her fingers through it to loosen the curls into waves, she allowed me to do my own makeup since I was "at least pretty good at that." Kylie was finished before us, complete with her long, sapphire blue dress that brought out her eyes and the tan she'd gotten from Florida. Unsurprisingly, Arianna was only half-finished with her hair by the time I got my own dress on.

Standing in front of the tall mirror by her closet door, I scrutinized my image. If I looked hard enough, my right leg still looked in desperate need of a good kickboard workout. Luckily there were no visible bruises or scars on my skin… unless you really strained your eyes. The gold necklace and bracelet Mom had bought looked delicate but I found myself really loving them. And the shoes! It was a wonder that my doctor hadn't restricted me from these five-inch nightmares.

"You look beautiful, Dee," Kylie said, stopping next to me to admire herself.

"And so do you," I answered with a smile. Then I tilted my head, turning this way and that to examine my image. "Are you sure it's not obvious that my poor leg is suffering through atrophy?"

"Positive." She nodded and then made a show of squinting. "Only if you narrow your eyes a little… and, you know, tilt your head sideways and cover your right eye. Maybe wear a pair of sunglasses."

"Oh shut up," I laughed, swiping at her arm.

Twenty minutes later, I was climbing out of the rented limo, trying not to step on Arianna's dark red train. Hoisting the thin chain on the small gold clutch I had onto my shoulder, I shut the door and followed after my friends. We were right at the entrance of Fleming's and the rest of our party was already here. They'd all gotten dropped off by parents and were going to hitch a ride with us in the limo to prom. I plastered a smile onto my face as everyone greeted one another, complimenting and gushing over gowns and suits.

"Hey, Addie," Derek greeted, giving me a friendly once-over. He was looking dashing in a black and white tuxedo. His date, Jenna, stood at his side smiling politely, looking elegant in a purple gown. "You look amazing."

"Thank you." I grinned. "You don't look so bad yourself."

He rolled his eyes and chuckled. "It's really too bad you didn't come with Rider. I thought you guys would be each other's date."

I sighed. "Why does everyone think that?" Really, it made me curious to know what exactly was running through my friends' minds these days.

He shrugged. "It seemed like you two were really into each other. Even Jenna's noticed and you guys only share one class."

Jenna grinned, nodding quickly. "Oh yeah, I've noticed all right."

"Really? Is there something I don't know about that goes on in art class?" I joked.

"You have no idea."

"Yeah, yeah. Okay," I replied, pretending to blow it off.

We laughed together and followed after the rest of the group that was entering through the restaurant's double doors. We were greeted with a lobby lit by soft, warm light and delicious smells that made my stomach grumble. I hadn't had a steak in a long time and I yearned for a New York strip. Arianna met the hostess at the stand and exchanged a few words. As I gazed around the place in curiosity, I caught some of the conversation.

"We only have nine guests," Arianna was saying, "but I made a reservation for ten."

"That's fine. We can just leave the chair for you if you want," the woman answered, pulling out a handful of thick menu books.

"Actually…" Something in her tone made me look up. My best friend was beaming at me and I swore I saw a twinkle in her eye. "Yeah, we'll need that seat." I frowned, wondering what she was talking about. Reading my expression, she nodded at me, looking pointedly somewhere behind me.

I turned around like everyone else, searching the area outside the doors. A black car had pulled up to the curb but from where I stood I couldn't catch the make or model. The thing that _did _catch my eye was the familiar blond head leaning down to talk through the window to the driver. My heart stuttered once and I was conscious of many pairs of eyes on me. Without a moment's hesitation, I brushed past Derek, not bothering to mumble an apology. I pushed on the doors of the restaurant and let the cool evening breeze wash over me.

Alex straightened up and turned, and it was an odd but overwhelming feeling, the relief mixed with elation that enveloped me. In one moment I was admiring how handsome he looked in the sharp black tuxedo and bowtie, and then in another, I was throwing myself at him.

With my arms around his neck, the familiar clean scent of his was subtle, convincing me that he was really there. Calmness spread over me and made me forget momentarily why I was here in the first place. But this was exactly why I needed him with me: everything about him was not only irresistible but he was like an anchor or a lifeline. I couldn't help but feel… _better._

Reluctantly, I pulled back to look at him. I could see the faded marks of brutality on his skin, especially on his jaw where an angry pinkish one was healing. Though it hurt to see him battered, I was only too glad that he was alive. "You're here," I breathed, feeling a smile stretch onto my face. "You're alive. You're okay."

"Of course I am," he chuckled, grinning. "You didn't really think I'd let you face prom alone, did you?"

I could only grin in response.

"Hold on," he said and turned back to the car. A moment later he was holding a clear plastic box with what looked like flowers. Looking more closely, I realized that it was a corsage the exact shade of my dress.

I felt the heat rise in my face as he smiled and took it out, putting it onto my wrist. There was a second box that contained his matching boutonniere. Unlike him, I had difficulty pinning it onto his lapel due to my shaky fingers.

He laughed softly and helped me with it, the skin of my hands tingling where he touched them. Once it looked perfect, I stepped back to admire him. Before I could compliment him, he said, "You look absolutely stunning, Addie." I noticed that he was staring at me.

Another blush crept under my cheeks at his smile but I managed to keep my composure. "It's all thanks to Arianna and Kylie… and my parents." I grinned. "Anyone else that contributed," I added, waving the hand with the corsage.

Alex returned the grin and stepped to the side to speak to whoever was in the car. "Thanks, Ben!"

"Ben?" I leaned down and saw the familiar face grinning at me from the driver's seat. "Ben!"

He laughed, "Hey there, Daniels. I gotta say, you look amazing tonight."

I smirked. "Thanks, Daniels. A little warning might've been nice though." I nodded my head towards Alex who was chortling next to me. I rolled my eyes.

"I figured a surprise might be better," Ben answered, shrugging.

"So who got you into this? My mom?"

He gave me a sly grin. "You could say that. Well, don't let me keep you. Eat a good steak for me. I'm the medium-well kind of guy."

We bid him goodbye and stayed there for a minute at the curb. One glance told me that Arianna and Kylie were watching us from the lobby but everyone else was nowhere to be seen. Arianna wore an expression of suspicion while Kylie seemed to be hiding a smile. I took a deep breath and reached for Alex. "I'm glad you came… and that you're okay."

He squeezed my fingers, swinging our entwined hands back and forth. "Me, too." Then he asked, "What about you? Are you doing alright?" His voice was soft as his eyes searched my face.

I shook my head. "I'm better now that you're here," I assured him.

There were so many questions on my mind about what had happened, but I knew that they could wait. Even for just one night, I could lock it all away temporarily so I could enjoy what was supposed to be one of the highlights of my high school experience. It didn't even bother me that much while we joined the rest of our group that even if the worst of it seemed over, there was still one of the worse parts yet to come… because the last thing on my mind was saying goodbye.

* * *

"Ugh, I think I've eaten enough to last me a lifetime," Alex groaned. "Perhaps we'll hold off on the dancing."

I rolled my eyes for probably the thirty-seventh time that night. Thirty-eight, and I was bound to have a pair of googly eyes for the rest of my life.

"Don't worry," I told him as the limo pulled in front of the hotel . "We can get a few dances in and call it a night."

The Hyatt Regency Crystal City hotel is in Arlington near the Washington, D.C. area. It sits among the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Pentagon City, along with other historical sites and museums. It's the one of the several hotels who see the countless number of tourists that is eager to see the White House or catch one of the wine tours of Virginia. I'd never been in it but I immediately approved of the prom committee's choice as we entered it.

As our group gathered with the other suits and gowns of satin and chiffon at the top of the spiral stairs leading to the prom, I turned to Alex. "Tell me again how you've managed to get us tickets when you technically aren't a student here anymore?"

I knew I wasn't the only to notice that; several students were looking at us and nudging one another, probably wondering why Alex was now showing up to school. It was the same exact thing Arianna had questioned. Alex had lied smoothly, telling her that his flight had been messed up the other day and that the principal was allowing him to attend the prom before he left. Actually, I had no idea when he really was leaving and he'd never mentioned it. At least not yet.

He just shrugged, putting an arm around my waist. "I have ways," he answered simply.

The large room that hosted weddings and other events was overflowing with the "Written in the Stars" theme. Dark blue, lavender, and white were featured as balloons, streamers, and banners that clung to the yellow-gold walls. There was even a disco ball hanging from the ceiling. The lights reflected off its many facets, bouncing around the room in sparkles and verging on a headache-inducing light show. The heavy bass of Rihanna thumped through the floor from the DJ's equipment up front and sent vibrations through my bones as our group broke off into different directions. There was a mosh pit of high school students on the dance floor and the elegant tables and chairs were grouped at the sides. A few other classmates and friends waved and said hello and I returned the greetings, suddenly aware of Alex right next to me.

"You're not a big fan of dancing, are you?" he had to shout into my ear.

I laughed and shook my head. "Never was. It's not like I have bad coordination but I don't know. It's not a huge deal."

The song then morphed into a slow acoustic, one that I instantly recognized as Howie Day's "Collide." Somehow it struck me as strange that they would play this but I barely had time to say so aloud; Alex was already pulling me away from the tables and towards the dance floor. I hate to put it this way, but there really were butterflies in my stomach as I wrapped my arms around his neck and he placed his hands on my waist.

A long moment passed as we listened to the song, the other couples swaying around us in broken but slow rhythms. Sooner or later I looked up at him and found that his eyes had lost all their seriousness and were filled with something else I couldn't put a name on, something close to grief.

Automatically I reached for his face, stroking my fingers gently across his cheek. "Is everything okay?"

In the back of my mind I knew that it wasn't, not entirely, but I ached to know what was making him look so upset.

"Is it that obvious?" he asked, smiling.

"Not really," I confessed, shaking my head. "Am I wrong and imagining things?"

It was his turn to shake his head. "No. I'm just thinking."

He said no more and I bit my lip, unsure of what to say. My eyes strayed towards the mark on his jaw and I frowned. "Does it hurt badly?" I realized that he could've been more injured than I was. The thought made me feel guilty.

"Don't worry. I'm fine."

Ignoring him, I leaned forward (the heels had given me the extra height to be only an inch shorter than him) and brushed my lips lightly onto his jaw. "Better?" I asked.

He knitted his eyebrows together in deep thought. "Not really." I was thinking up something witty to say when he pressed his mouth against mine, holding me closer by the small of my back. Several long, blissful seconds passed as my heart sped, fueled by the adrenaline surging through me. Despite my stronghold on his neck, he pulled back to grin at me. "Much better."

I smiled at the abrupt enthusiasm in his eyes.

We danced for the rest of the song, ultimately going back to the tables to meet up with Kylie and Randy. Neither of us let go of each other, keeping our hands entwined as the four of us chatted and nibbled on the snacks the other couple had brought over. I noticed that ever since Alex had arrived, Kylie hadn't stopped eyeing us but not in the same way Arianna did. I'd almost forgotten that she knew I was a CIA agent and Alex (sort of) worked for MI6. It wasn't until they went off to dance to Black Eyed Peas that I decided to bring it up.

"I've been meaning to tell you…" I began.

"Should I be scared?" he asked, smirking.

I shrugged. "Actually, I don't know." That made him stop, the grin slipping from his face. "Kylie stopped by last Sunday. I… well, I explained to her everything that happened with Mather." I waited, watching as he processed my words.

"Even about me?"

"Yes."

He frowned, scooting his chair closer to mine. "Did you think I was going to be mad at you?"

Sighing, I avoided his gaze, fingering the cloth napkin on the table. "Kind of, I'm not sure. I know you've told your friends about your past and I decided I'd do the same… It kind of just came out and I honestly didn't give much thought about keeping _your _secret—"

Alex shook his head. "I don't mind, Addie. In fact, I'm glad you told her. It doesn't look like she's left you yet."

I pursed my lips and agreed, "You're right."

"Besides, it's not as if I don't trust her anyway. Though I _was_ wondering why she's had her eyes on us all night," he mused, looking towards the dance floor. "I had a feeling it didn't have anything to do with you and me in particular."

"You noticed?" I asked, my eyebrows shooting up. And then I smiled embarrassedly as he gave me a look. "Forgive me," I said with mock servility. "I forgot with whom I was speaking." I bowed my head.

He just laughed and rolled his eyes.

The first hour of the dance passed quickly in dancing, food, and conversation. No one else asked anything that Alex couldn't lie about, to my relief. The only time I left his side was when Derek wanted at least one dance with me and luckily (though to my ego's disappointment) Alex willingly complied. Arianna snatched him up at that moment and while I was worried that she'd interrogate him, they seemed to end up having a good, friendly time. After that, I was glad to be with him again while we hung out with other friends in the corner.

"I might need you to take me to the hospital after this," I grumbled as I shifted my weight onto my other leg.

He stared at me. "Why?"

"Because I'm gonna need an amputation!" I glared pointedly down at my feet where the gold heels sparkled in the lights.

We laughed together and I laid my head on his shoulder with my arms around his torso. His hands rubbed my back soothingly as I thought about bringing up the much dreaded subject I'd been avoiding.

"So when do you leave?" I asked quietly.

There was a pause and then I felt him sigh. "I should've left on Thursday," he explained. "The CIA insisted I leave as soon as possible and Mrs. Jones wants to see me. However, I spoke to Ben and while he managed to help me out with tonight, he got our flights booked for Tuesday."

I nodded. "That's our last day."

"Yeah. Our flight leaves mid-afternoon so you and your parents will be able to see us off… only if you'd like to, of course."

I heard the teasing tone in his voice. "I wouldn't miss it," I said matter-of-factly, hugging him tighter.

"And I know you want to know what happened last weekend," he added softly, pulling back to look at me. "I promise I'll tell you tomorrow. Ben's already notified your parents that you all will be briefed at headquarters."

"Where exactly have you two been staying?"

"The CIA got us a room at the Courtyard Marriott."

I just nodded again. I was starting to feel out of place here and I knew exactly why. Surrounded by people that only knew half of me, I was once again wishing that I could hide behind closed doors. Before Alex had arrived, it was the opposite: I'd been itching to immerse myself in everything at the CIA, working assignments as often as four times a month. Now, as I thought about aspects that didn't concern being a secret agent like college, things were becoming different. Even David's death was contributing to that.

But tonight wasn't supposed to be about any of that. Even if I was being selfish, I was going to be selfish and make this one happy, unforgettable night.

I stepped away from Alex, unwinding his arms from me. He looked confused at first but I kept his hand, tugging him towards the dance floor. "Come on, Alex Rider. I want one last dance."

* * *

**Note:** Yay! Sorry, I'm a sucker for romance, especially in literature. I tried my best not to go over-the-top cheesy.

Anyway, a few chapters ago, I was listening to my iTunes and Avril Lavigne's "Fall to Pieces" came on, practically _sparking _this brilliant idea: if I had to choose a song to represent certain things, what would they be? It's pretty irrelevant, I know, but I'm as addicted to music as I am to writing and I thought I'd share this with you.

So I figured "Fall to Pieces" is a perfect song to describe Addie's feelings for Alex. Then I heard Howie Day's "Collide" and thought, Maybe that'll be Alex's song for _her._ And so I realized that Avril's "Slipped Away" is also quite the fit for Addie and her brother Joshua. (I don't know, it seems like Avril Lavigne just has a lot of Addie-type songs.)

I didn't choose these based solely on their lyrics; while listening to the actual music and voices, I could really _see _how well they fit with the situation.

But yes, enough about that. Random thoughts. Review please! I thank you again for your amazing support.


	18. Sic Infit

**Note: **Enjoy :)

_NatalieRose x: _Thank you so much for your review, it meant a lot! And don't worry, you'll see plenty of Alex here (;

_ NickHeaven: _I truly appreciate your support, thanks so much. This won't be the last you see of me!

Muchas gracias to everyone else that reviewed. Longer AN down below!

Chapter Eighteen – Sic Infit (So It Begins)

-Alex-

I'd known that breaking the news to Addie about David's betrayal would be hard… just not _this _hard.

I had watched anxiously as the emotions flickered across her face: confusion, disbelief, horror, and then denial. I thought about reaching out to her across the table but even her parents weren't doing so—it was best to let her absorb it herself. Forcing my eyes away from her, I saw that Margot and Joseph were quicker to react but with denial not acting as their prime emotion. Margot, as steely though soft she could be, was close to tears, her face lined with disbelieving anger. Her husband's jaw was set in frustration and I knew that if he'd had anything in front of him, like papers or a pen, he'd have thrown them.

"We're sorry," Ben said from beside me. He was leaning with his hands folded on the table, gazing intensely at the family.

"We had no idea," Julia Stark added. The hardness that she seemed to have been born with had suddenly disappeared, replaced with the heavy weight of distress. Even Brian James next to her was no longer his cocky self; he might've been about to cry.

Then Addie stood up abruptly, barely removing her eyes from the spot on the table she'd been staring at.

"Excuse me," she whispered and stumbled from the room, leaving the rest of us in guilty silence. A moment later Margot stood to follow after her daughter.

Ben heaved a sigh, rubbing his face in his hands. Across from him, Joseph was shaking his head. "I really trusted that man," he muttered. "All of it was his idea? His plan? From the very beginning?"

This was the first time I'd seen him since the fire and the signs of wear and tear were visible in his eyes. _Tired _wouldn't have covered half of how the man looked. I could tell that he was probably more angry than unhappy about David's betrayal. After all, David had been like a family friend.

"Yes," I answered quietly. I wanted to say more but I had a feeling that nothing would have consoled him.

The door to the conference room opened and Margot's head poked in. "Alex?" she called.

I pushed my chair back, not meeting anyone's gaze at the table, and went out into the hall. Addie sat on the floor with her back against the wall and her arms wrapped around her knees. Margot put a hand on my arm and said quietly, "I'll be inside if you need me." I nodded, not looking away from Addie.

As soon as we were alone, I dropped to the floor and bent my head to find her eyes. Her hair had fallen down the sides of her face but I could see the green irises brimming with tears above her knees. Immediately I took one of her clenched fists, gently loosening it to hold her hand in both of mine. She sniffed and lifted her head, using her free hand to wipe her cheeks. "Sorry," she said, her voice thick with tears. "For bringing you out here, I mean. I just didn't… I needed to get out of there."

I squeezed her fingers. "No need to be sorry."

We sat in silence for a while, the only sounds being her occasional sniffles and sobs. Eventually she dropped her knees and sat crisscross, lifting her head to look at me. Her eyes were red and wet and her cheeks were flushed. The sight of her distraught face sent a stabbing pain through me, accompanied by the hatred for David that had budded as soon as I figured out who he was. As I reached to brush away her tears, she opened her mouth to speak. "Did he seem… different… at all to you? You know, when he… after—" She broke off, pressing her lips together.

I wanted to tell her the truth yet part of me wanted to protect her from it. It was bad enough that the man she thought she knew had been plotting her death behind her back. Confirming that he was a madman seemed like adding insult to injury… But then again, she didn't like being lied to. I remembered what had happened after we'd told her the real reason I was here. "Yes," I answered, "but also no." I proceeded to explain, at the same time discovering the details myself. "It was almost like a Dr. Jekyll-and-Mr. Hyde experience but of the strangest sort. While the David that you know—er, _knew_ was there, the David that was desperate to save his family was also." I took a deep breath, watching Addie's face. She was focusing on the carpet before her but I knew she was still listening attentively. "Now that I think about it, I know he didn't want to hurt you. If there had been any other way, he would have chosen it."

"Then why didn't he try? Why didn't he try to find another way?"

"I honestly don't know. Maybe he did but… I guess it turned out that his best chance was you."

She glanced up at me, no longer crying. "And you," she added softly.

My throat tightened but I nodded my head stiffly. "And me."

Shaking her head, she gave an exasperated sigh. "I'm torn between hating him and missing him, Alex. I just don't know what to feel."

I pulled her towards me, wrapping my arms around her shoulders as she leaned into my chest. I could smell her hair; strawberries again. "I know, Addie. But you know what? You can do both at the same time. Miss him as you knew him: the family friend, the man who taught you and protected you… But don't dwell on anything other than that. That other part of him isn't worth your tears."

She gripped my hand firmly and I felt the sobs wracking her body once more. Gritting my teeth, I rubbed her back, trying to calm her. I didn't like seeing her upset; for a headstrong girl like her, it seemed _wrong._ "Thank you though," she said, sniffing and turning to look up at me. Despite her tears, she managed a small smile. "For everything."

Underneath all the morbid feelings and thoughts clouding my mind, there was a glimmer of happiness. I gave her a reassuring smile back, touching my fingertips to her cheeks. "Anytime."

By the time the meeting was over, several things had been settled. To my slight surprise and Anthony Payne's satisfaction, Addie had decided to stick with her job for the summer, while keeping the number of assignments at a minimum. With her plans to go to California for college (she'd made the snap decision right then though she was probably going to change her mind later), she was going to be even less involved in working with the CIA, since that meant working with a different team on the west coast. Currently, there was some work being put into finding a new unit leader, though Stark had actually vied for consideration. I knew that if the situation had been different and James had looked horrified, I might have laughed.

After some time, I could feel the end coming. It was lurking around the corner, my old life that I'd endured before coming here. Of course, during the prom last night Addie and I had talked about us and what was going to happen. We both had admitted that we didn't want it to just end abruptly, not when things had changed this much. I wanted her in my life for a reason other than my unwavering feelings for her; no matter how hard I'd tried to leave the spy stuff behind me, it just kept catching up. Even when Addie was an agent herself and could relate to me on these levels, I had still learned to embrace it and accept it as part of my life… and that's what made me who I've become. That's what had confirmed my want and need to be with her. She was my tie to the spy world I'd longed to leave behind, a filter that let me see the bright side and morphed my bitter hatred into submissive appreciation. I could no longer tell myself that the good things weren't there, not when Addie was one of them.

Monday, after they got out of school, I spent time with Addie, Kylie, Arianna, and Derek at Arianna's house. Mother Nature had decided to grace us with ninety-degree weather and buckets of sunlight, forcing us to lounge in the backyard on the immensely green grass. Mrs. Reynolds was an avid gardener; the entire house was surrounded by roses, lilacs, tulips, lilies… all the ones I recognized and more. Their perfume was nicely thick in the air but not enough to suffocate me. Yet.

When I'd asked for the bathroom, Arianna had guided me inside where the planting obsession seemed to let up a bit. Her home felt warm and welcoming despite the floral patterns and occasional vase or bowl of flowers, but I found it funny to see a framed alphabetical list of some plants and their meanings hanging across the toilet. I was still chuckling at it afterwards when I entered the living room. Arianna was there, standing at the short bookshelf near the sliding doors that led to the backyard. Addie's back was to me as she sat on the grass with her face to the sun and Derek and Kylie were further away, kneeling by a bed of flowers.

Arianna turned and saw me. "There you are." She took a blossom from the vase sitting on the shelf and held it out to me. "Give this to Addie."

I frowned at it, cautiously approaching her.

"It's a flower, Alex. It won't bite."

Ignoring the comment, I asked, "What's it called?"

"It's a primrose," she answered, placing it in my palm. It was actually an attractive flower; its five petals were white around the edges, turning a light pink that darkened into red and then met as yellow in the center. "Her favorite," she added.

"Addie has a favorite flower?" I heard the astonishment in my voice but I was unable to help it. She'd never mentioned liking a _particular_ flower, only liking any that "smelled good and looked pretty." She may not have been a girly person, but she did like flowers.

Arianna raised an eyebrow and nodded once at my hand. "She will once you give that to her."

I couldn't figure out why she wanted me to do this, but I figured that perhaps she was trying to help. Though sometimes the girl acted naïve, she always had good intentions—that was what Addie had said. Arianna might've been doing me a favor; I found myself forming the question in my head as I approached Addie from behind, holding the primrose delicately.

She had her eyes closed as I peered around her head. "Don't open your eyes… but tell me what you smell."

I heard her sniff the flower I held under her nose and her forehead scrunched up in concentration. "Well, it smells really nice… light and, hmm, like spring… Yeah, like spring. There's no other way to say it." Her eyes opened and when she saw it, a smile broke out onto her face. "Aww, it's so pretty!"

Grinning along, I seated myself beside her. "Addie, I know I'm going to sound like a fool saying this…"

She gazed at me curiously as I twirled the primrose between my fingers.

"But I want to make it official," I finished. Taking a deep breath, I asked, "Will you be my girlfriend?" I offered her the flower, watching as she stared at it.

The blood pounded erratically in my ears and she finally looked up at me with wide eyes. "That's a stupid question, Alex." Before I could even try to comprehend her words, she beamed and said, "Because of course I will!" She launched herself at me, knocking me backwards onto the grass.

I laughed with what air hadn't been knocked out of me, relieved, and reached to put the primrose behind her ear. She lifted herself up on her forearms, hovering above me with her hair dangling in my face. Sweeping it back, Addie planted a kiss on the corner of my mouth and drew back with a grin. "Silly Alex. Did you really think I was gonna say no?"

I decided to not even pretend. "I just wanted to make it official," I repeated, squinting at the sun shining above her.

"Well, it's official, all right." She shifted off of me so that she was lying on her side, propped up by her elbow. Her hand clasped mine. "Thank you for asking, anyway."

Returning her smile, I replied, "Anytime."

She sighed, rolling onto her back to look up at the sky. It was perfectly blue and cloudless, the rare kind. "Can you believe it's been a whole month since you got here?" she asked. "Four weeks today."

"Has it really?" I hadn't noticed at all. In some ways it felt that they had gone by quickly, but in others, awfully slowly. If only I had a good enough excuse to stay.

"Mm-hmm," she answered. Her eyes were on me but her mind seemed to be elsewhere. I just stared right back, not feeling the need to say any more. I knew what we were both thinking though and neither of us wanted to bring it up.

Since tomorrow was the seniors' last day, they hadn't had any homework for the past few days. Addie and I got to spend a few more hours at Arianna's house before we had to go back to the Hilton where Ben would meet us.

I had said goodbye to the three friends, each one with a different farewell message. Derek had given me a pleasant "Take care," with a handshake and Kylie had smiled and told me to stay safe and keep in touch. Arianna, on the other hand, seemed to still be holding her doubts about me, even when she'd been obviously pleased at how the primrose situation had turned out.

"If you break her heart, I _will _find you," she'd whispered in my ear when I hugged her. And then I saw that Addie was frowning at her best friend as if she'd heard the threat. I guess I shouldn't be surprised to know that Arianna really would hunt for me all over England if she had to. But obviously I'd reassured her that I didn't have some secret girlfriend I was going back to… at least, not one that I knew of anyway.

The three of us, including her parents, had dinner that night and watched a movie in their hotel room, spending our last night all together. Ben had surprised Addie with a new Polaroid camera since hers had been lost in the fire. Much to his dismay and dislike for self-portraits, she forced all of us to take a picture multiple times in different arrangements so everyone could have their own copies.

"You know, it's too bad we didn't really get to show you around," she said the next day as we rode the Range Rover through Arlington. Though Joseph and Margot hadn't been able to recover much from the house fire, their cars had remained unharmed save for the small damage on the Audi from my fall. "It would've been nice to drive over to D.C. for a weekend."

"I'm sure Alex can find time to visit," Ben commented from my other side. I gave him a questioning look; did he really think I had the money and resources for a holiday? Something in his expression said that he did.

Margot spoke up from the passenger seat ahead. "But what about you, Ben? Don't you get time off?" I'd noticed that she had developed a sort of motherly affection towards him. I'd also realized that Joshua would have been close to his age, but I didn't know if that meant anything.

"I do," he answered honestly, "but I also like to work hard. Sometimes I work through holidays."

I coughed and he narrowed his eyes at me.

"Well maybe you and Alex can fly over together in a few months," Margot continued.

In actuality, I wasn't too sure about that. This was the first time I'd seen Ben in years and it was all thanks to leaving MI6 behind but getting thrown into it again. Neither of us was positive that we'd see each other again; it was something I hadn't really thought about. Nevertheless, he didn't refuse her right away.

"We'll do our best," he told her.

By the time we arrived and parked at the drop-off at the airport, it was two o' clock on the dot. Our flight was scheduled to depart at four. Ben and I both had one suitcase each and as we checked them in, that was when we said our goodbyes.

Joseph couldn't leave the car running unattended outside, so he went first. Addie had told me that she'd confessed to her parents about us and somehow, it surprised neither of them. If her father had anything against it, he didn't show it as he embraced me (a bit awkwardly) and shook my hand. "Regardless of why you came here in the first place, Alex Rider, I'm sure glad I got to know you." He smiled and patted my shoulder hard. "Thank you for, well, everything. We're here if you need anything." With a grin, he concluded, "You're a good kid. Take care of yourself, eh?"

I smiled. "Sure thing, Joseph. Thanks."

Margot had just finished hugging Ben. She turned to me and I saw that her eyes were watering. I gave her a tight smile, sadness washing over me like a tidal wave. Though I hadn't had any kind of special moments with her, there were the things we had both experienced that put us on the same level. It made me feel like there was _some_ sort of connection, however irresolute it might be.

"Margot—" I began but her hug cut me off.

"I don't know what to say to you, Alex," she whispered into my hair. "But be good, alright? If you ever need anything… we owe you so much. You have our number; just give us a call." She pulled back and placed both of her hands on the sides of my face, scrutinizing me.

"You have my word," I promised her, suddenly feeling childish. "And take care of Addie for me," I added quietly with a cheeky grin.

She laughed lightly. "You know I will. Bye, sweetheart." After giving me another hug, she stepped back, looking at her daughter who was standing off to the side. "We'll be waiting outside," she told her before smiling again and leaving.

In my peripheral vision, Ben was pretending to be massively interested in the bunch of tags that people used to write their information on and attach to their bags. I would've snorted if it weren't for the fact that Addie was much too important for Ben's lame I'll-be-over-here attempts to entertain me.

I became painfully aware of her every detail. I memorized how her brown-blonde locks fell a few inches above her waist and how a strand kept falling over her eyes. She stood with her ankles crossed and weight shifted on one leg, a form that I learned to be something she sometimes took up when she felt awkward or unsure. At the same time, her fingers were playing absently with the ends of her hair, another nervous habit. My eyes strained to remember her exactly as she was, and the small things about the light blue t-shirt, denim capris, and black Converse. I noted how, because the shirt was a little big (it was mine), the sleeves were rolled up and she'd tied the bottom into a knot in the back; how the denim looked faded; and how her laces were double-knotted.

I saved her face for last, knowing that there was no way the Polaroid picture of her in my pocket that I'd saved the night of the house fire had accurately captured what I saw in her eyes. They were lit with happiness, that much was clear, but behind them stirred the troubles she was trying to conceal. Wordlessly, I reached for her and hugged her closely.

Part of me had definitely anticipated never seeing her in person for a long time. Now, another was saying that I shouldn't worry so much because nevertheless, we were still together. There would be phone calls, emails, text messages… Nothing said that we couldn't make three thousand and seven hundred miles work. This was one thing I couldn't allow myself to let go of.

"Promise me you'll call once you're home?" she asked, her voice muffled in my shoulder.

"I promise," I assured her. "And you promise me that you'll always be safe?" I trusted her with her CIA assignments but I'd soon developed a little concern for her welfare. I knew that even being a safety freak wouldn't keep her one hundred percent out of harm's way.

"Of course." She released me from her grip, tilting her head back to look up into my eyes. "I'll miss you," she said softly, smiling half-heartedly.

I took one of her hands and put in on my face, turning my head to kiss her palm. "I just might miss you more," I tried to joke.

She chuckled. "We'll see about that, Rider."

Grinning, I took her chin and leaned down, pressing my lips firmly but gently against hers. She responded by reaching to tangle her fingers into my hair while I cradled her face in one hand, holding on to her waist in the other. A wolf whistle sounded somewhere but I ignored it, concentrating on these last few moments.

When we broke apart, smiles crossed our lips at the same time. As always, there was a pink tinge in her cheeks and her eyes sparkled. "Bye, Addie," I nearly whispered, aware of Ben hovering near me.

She took a deep breath, tucking flyways behind her ear. Stepping backwards once, she smiled and answered, "I'll talk to you soon." She was avoiding the actual goodbye, focusing and relying on our only means of communication.

"Soon," I agreed, retreating slowly. I watched as she gave a little wave, grinning at Ben, and turned. I didn't take my eyes off of her as she walked through the automatic sliding doors, staring at her back until she disappeared from my view, obscured by a group of travelers.

"Come on, lover boy," Ben said loudly, taking my shoulder. I let him lead me away in the direction of the security checkpoint.

And then it was at that moment after I'd taken four steps that it hit me, a sudden realization that stunned me like I'd stuck my finger into an electric socket. Of course, I should've known it all along… but somehow it had taken a goodbye to make me see.

I loved her. I'd known for her all of four weeks, nearly hated her at first, and then understood that I didn't and couldn't just simply _like _her or even _really like _her. There was too much in me that I felt whenever I looked at her and touched her, part of it a yearning to never have to leave. I loved her and I had never been so positive, so sure about anything like this in my life.

Spinning around, I scanned the outside of the airport as the adrenaline washed through me. She couldn't have left yet; I had time… didn't I? I took a step forward in the direction of the doors. The plan in my head disappeared as hastily as it had formed as soon as I realized that the Range Rover was no longer there.

"Alex? What are you doing?"

I'd almost forgotten about him.

Ben came up to me, examining my face. "She'll be fine, you know."

Still gazing past the doors, I heaved a sigh. "Yeah… I know." There was no point in trying to tell him what had happened in the last few moments; he probably already suspected it.

I tore my eyes away and turned back around, still feeling his scrutiny. As I had long ago learned to do, I kept my face impassive, locking the door and throwing away the key. As always, I walked among normal human beings, never knowing their secrets while they never knew mine. As always, I was determined to put the bad memories behind me, always looking forward, always hoping that what was next turned out to be better.

But for the first time, I wasn't leaving with a new scar, a new bitter recollection to file away in the back of my mind. In fact, as I stood there in the security line, the truth dawned the way the sun rose over the horizon, warming me in its light:

There were no scars anymore. I was whole.


	19. Epilogue

**Note: **For those of you that had already read the original "last chapter" yesterday, I split up chapter eighteen and the epilogue that used to be at the end. It's convenient anyway because I forgot to mention a few things and, though I wanted to post a chapter nineteen containing those details, you aren't allowed to use single chapters for author's notes. Shoot. So you can go ahead and skip all the way to the end where I've added stuff to the AN!

Epilogue

The security man hated his job. He hadn't gone and trained at the police academy for six months to stare at television screens all day. It was the same thing during his ten hour shifts: eat, watch, sleep, watch, use the bathroom, yell at Miller for something totally irrelevant, watch some more… The only interesting things he came across were things like watching people have panic attacks, trying to smuggle illegal objects through security, or kids throwing hissy fits. The other security guards posted out there got to see the real action. _He _was forced to watch behind closed doors.

"Miller!"

The younger security man, a red-haired kid in his early twenties, burst through the door. "Yes?"

"Get me another coffee, would you?" the plumper, older (and slightly more purplish) one ordered gruffly.

His beady little eyes strayed towards the monitors on one side of the small room, subconsciously searching for anything out of place. At first the heated argument between a couple caught his attention, causing him to sit up and scoot closer, but then two particular figures in the corner of one screen sounded off red alarms in his head.

"Miller!"

The door opened again, revealing the flushed face of his secondary. "I'm already on it, sir—"

"No, forget about the coffee, you idiot!" The man snapped. He kept his eyes on the blond-haired boy and the older man standing next to him in the security line. "Hand me the phone. I need to make a call. NO, NOT THAT PHONE. THE CELL PHONE, BOY!"

He waited impatiently, glaring at the screen before him. Two seconds later, the prepaid cell phone was in his hand, his stout fingers having trouble dialing the number he'd been forced to memorize. It rang once and clicked, the cool, clipped voice of his superior commanding, "Speak."

The security man grinned wickedly, using his other hand to pause and zoom in on the camera's grainy image. "I've found him, sir. I've found Alex Rider."

* * *

On the other end of the line, Adrian Castillo was congratulating the man as he sat a under a large umbrella on the pool deck behind his vacation home in Costa Rica. He wore only a short-sleeved button up and lightweight swim trunks, though he had no intention of touching the pool, especially not when his nephew was close to contaminating it with the Brazilian models he'd brought over.

The temperature was at a steady eighty-eight degrees with a light breeze. The sky was beautiful and unblemished by wispy white clouds, allowing the bright Caribbean sun to wash over the palm trees and brighten the lively colors that sprang up around the coral-colored house. It was six thousand square feet of just one of many paradises.

Castillo hung up the phone and gestured to one of the men in black suits standing at his shoulder. He gave him a few quick orders in his ear, sending the man walking swiftly away. Having already forgotten about him, Castillo glanced over at the oversized, cerulean blue pool next to him and watched his nephew. It seemed the he still needed to learn some lessons on how he treated his guests, particularly when they were as insignificant as these ones. One of the first rules is: don't get attached.

After taking a sip from his cocktail, he sighed and called, "Cesar, _venga aquí,_" and gestured with his fingers.

It took a minute or two, but the twenty-year-old playboy finally disentangled himself from the women and climbed out of the pool. It wasn't difficult to see why the female population (and some of the male on occasion) fawned over him; born from a Hispanic father and half German, half Irish mother, Cesar Dominguez knew exactly how to flaunt the coffee-colored skin and ruffled dark hair. He'd learned his womanizing ways on his own growing up in private school and going through several private tutors. Even with his arrogant, sometimes foolish ways, the young man was actually very smart. Unlike his father, he knew how to grow an empire and attain power; even better, he was an excellent manipulator. He could turn anyone into useless putty in his hands. These reasons were exactly why Castillo had adopted him.

Wrapping a thick towel around his waist, Cesar approached his uncle, pool water dripping from his hair and down the carefully sculpted arms and chest, his prized possessions… other than what he couldn't display openly. _"¿Tío?" _he greeted with a smile. _Uncle?_

"Ready yourself, Cesar," Castillo said simply, still speaking in Spanish. He looked up at him through his sunglasses. "Your vacation is over. Remember that project we discussed a few months ago?"

Cesar had no trouble at all recalling it. The smile widened into an enthusiastic grin. "Of course. How could I forget?"

"It's time." Castillo downed the last of his drink, finishing with a satisfied sigh. "Let's pay Mr. Rider and his friends a visit."

* * *

**Note: **If you haven't noticed already, you must be blind because there WILL be a sequel! I haven't got too much planned for it yet but I have some ideas churning away in my head (details below). Unfortunately, I may not be starting it anytime soon for various reasons, like I like to spend time developing the plot and details, etc; school starts TOMORROW (omg); and I would like to continue my other Alex Rider fic _And the Truth Will Set You Free_ since I've only got one chapter done for that.

So yes, I'm really sorry if I don't start the sequel for a while... months even. It's my senior year but I'll do my best to take advantage of holiday breaks and such(:

I do have some thoughts about the sequel:

-Do you prefer first or third person? To be specific, I use third person limited because it's kind of like first and third morphed into one. But I found myself, as I wrote this fic, sometimes wishing that I was writing in third. I guess I could cheat like I sort of did with these first and last chapters and use both, but I'm not sure yet. What are _your _opinions?

-Two words for the main idea/plot that has planted itself in my head: _spy school. _Now, I know that may elicit some different responses though we all might have the same picture in our head when thinking of those words. However, as I go through the details while brainstorming, I want to make it genuine and _good, _something that is unexpected and different from whatever cliches and stuff that come up when you hear "spy school." It's just a possibility though; I'll try to come up with other things.

Aside from that, if you have any suggestions or ideas you'd like to see for the sequel, please do share because your opinions are highly valued and always considered!

Feel free to continue commenting/reviewing/asking questions/whatever the story, even long after it's been finished, and since I won't be updating it anymore, I will try to PM you a response. I can't guarantee that I'll be on FF everyday but I'll check in often on my fics and all.

Thank you thank you thank you all SO much for your amazing support. You have no idea how much it really means to me when people truly appreciate my work. It just motivates me to work harder and better myself. I do not have regrets about joining this site and it's all because of you guys.

Thank you again. Thankyouthankyouthankyou. Seriously. I love you all. You're awesome.

Thank you.


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